In October, the Russian Transport Ministry, Russian Railways, the National Development and Reform Commission and China Railway Corp signed a memorandum on the development of high-speed railway communication.

The length of the Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway is expected to be around 770 kilometers and it will run through seven Russian regions with total population of more than 25 million.

The total investment in the project is estimated to be more than 1 trillion roubles, with some experts indicating that the project could also be a part of the new Silk Road.

The rail link connecting Moscow and Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, a Russian republic, could go through Kazakhstan and be extended to China, Russia's Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov said in February, according to the Russian News Agency.