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Why was the Hanoi-Kunming railway built?
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Yunnan
Pavilion atop Yulongxue (āJade Dragon Snowā) Mountain, near Lijiang, Yunnan province, China.
The Hanoi-Kunming railway was built by France at the turn of the 20th century as part of its imperialist efforts in the region. Having already established a presence in Vietnam, the French viewed Yunnan as being within their sphere of influence and constructed the railway specifically to exploit the province's resources. Until World War II, this line served as the only rail link connecting Yunnan to the outside world.12