Wang Yi: China welcomes South Asian countries to continue riding the China Development Express. South Asia | China | Countries
On August 16, 2023, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Director of the Central Foreign Affairs Office, attended the opening ceremony of the 7th China South Asia Expo in Kunming and delivered a speech. Sri Lankan Prime Minister Gonawadna, Lao Vice President Bani, Nepalese Vice President Yadav, Vietnamese Vice Prime Minister Chen Liuguang and others attended and delivered speeches.
Wang Yi said that China and South Asian countries are connected by mountains and seas, with a shared destiny. They appreciate each other in the process of cultural rejuvenation and walk hand in hand in the trend of globalization. We follow the trend of history, accelerate development and revitalization, and grow into the fastest growing and most dynamic region in the world. We respect each other equally, act towards each other, and achieve fruitful results in cooperation in various fields.
Over the past decade, we have consolidated unity and cooperation, jointly safeguarding regional security and development environment. We have continued to jointly build the "the Belt and Road" and made gratifying progress in connectivity, infrastructure, trade and investment. We have carried out in-depth friendly exchanges, adhered to the concept of openness and inclusiveness, built a multi-level platform for people to people exchanges, endowed new vitality to the millennium old civilization interaction, laid a solid public opinion foundation for the cooperation between the two regions, and wrote a new chapter in the era of China's South Asian friendship.
Wang Yi emphasized that China welcomes South Asian countries to continue riding the fast train of China's development and sharing the dividends of China's development. We are willing to work with South Asian countries to seize historical opportunities, strengthen unity and cooperation, continuously cultivate new driving forces for development, build a development community, and contribute to the long-term peace, stability, and prosperity of the region. Wang Yi proposed suggestions for deepening cooperation in four aspects between the two sides.
One is to deepen strategic mutual trust, support each other in international and regional affairs, work together to advocate open regionalism, build closer regional cooperation, jointly safeguard the interests of developing countries, and jointly defend international fairness and justice.
The second is to deepen connectivity, promote the construction of backbone channels such as the China Pakistan Economic Corridor and the China Nepal Cross border Railway, accelerate the construction of key channels, key nodes, and key projects, and promote the smooth upgrading of regional economic circulation.
The third is to deepen economic and trade cooperation, further promote trade facilitation and institutional standard docking, drive investment cooperation through consultation, joint construction and sharing, and closely connect global production and supply chains.
The fourth is to deepen cultural exchanges. Strengthening the bonds of connection, elevating traditional friendship, and creating a more cohesive and diverse social foundation for regional cooperation.
Wang Yi said that the China South Asia Expo has become an important platform for promoting exchanges and cooperation between China, South Asia, and even countries around the world. Welcome South Asian countries to explore more opportunities for cooperation and achieve more results through this grand event, jointly promote the development and revitalization of Asia, and work together to create a better future.
The parties expressed that South Asian countries have actively promoted the high-quality joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" with China and achieved fruitful results. The theme of this Expo is in line with the trend of the times and the development needs of various countries. We appreciate China for creating an efficient cooperation platform and helping South Asian countries ride the fast train of China's development. We look forward to strengthening unity and cooperation with China, and making contributions to regional openness, inclusiveness, peace, stability, and common development.
This year's Expo will be held in Kunming from August 16th to 20th, jointly hosted by the Ministry of Commerce and the Yunnan Provincial Government, attracting representatives from 85 countries, regions, and international organizations, as well as more than 30000 exhibitors online and offline.