REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Japan has expressed its support towards the Indonesian government's plan to develop Shinkansen, a network of high-speed railway lines, to link Jakarta and Bandung.

"We welcome the plan (to develop Shinkansen). Establishing a Shinkansen network will offer speedy as well as safe travel," Deputy Cabinet Secretary for Public Affairs and Director of Global Communication of the Japanese Prime Minister's Office, Kenko Sone, said here in a lunch briefing during a break in the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Asian-African Conference (AAC) on Wednesday (22/4).

Japan has been operating the Shinkansen train for 60 years. "And not a single accident caused by a human has occurred," Sone stated, adding that the ones reported were a result of natural causes such as earthquakes.

Safety is the priority while operating the train, which travels at a speed of 300 kilometers per hour.