XI JINPING ADDRESSES CAEXPO OPENING CEREMONY

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the 17th China-ASEAN Expo and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on November 27.（LI XUEREN/XINHUA）

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the 17th China-ASEAN Expo（CAEXPO）and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on November 27.

Xi stressed that in 2013，he announced an initiative for China to work with ASEAN countries for a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and for a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future．Seven years on，the China-ASEAN relationship has grown into the most successful and vibrant model for cooperation in the Asia-Pacific and an exemplary effort in building a community with a shared future for mankind．When confronted by COVID-19，China and ASEAN have helped each other and took on the challenge in solidarity．The world is undergoing momentous changes unseen in a century．Never before have the destinies of people in different countries been so closely connected．China continues to regard ASEAN as a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy and a key region in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation．China will work with ASEAN to advance all-round cooperation，maintain the good momentum for development and prosperity in our region and build a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future．Xi put forward the following suggestions:

First，enhance strategic mutual trust and further synergize our development plans．More efforts will be made to build the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor，strengthen cooperation on infrastructure connectivity，speed up the development of existing economic corridors and key projects，and continue to develop the China-ASEAN Multimodal Transport Alliance.

Second，elevate economic and trade cooperation and facilitate an early and full recovery of the regional economy．China will further implement the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement，and looks forward to the early enforcement of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership．China will work with ASEAN countries to sustain the smooth flow of trade，promote mutual investment，open up markets wider to each other，and foster deeply integrated industrial，supply and value chains.

Third，enhance innovation in science and technology and deepen cooperation on the digital economy．China will work with ASEAN countries to create more highlights of cooperation in such areas as smart city，5G，artificial intelligence，e-commerce，big data，blockchain and telemedicine，and strengthen the protection of data security and policy communication and coordination.

Fourth，strengthen cooperation against COVID-19 and enhance capacity building in public health．China will step up policy dialogue，information sharing and vaccine cooperation with ASEAN countries．When the COVID-19 vaccines are available for use，China will actively consider the needs of ASEAN countries，provide financial support to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund，and train for ASEAN countries 1，000 administrative and specialized personnel in the health sector.

Xi Jinping emphasized that China will embark on a new journey next year toward fully building a modern socialist country．China will stay as committed as ever to further opening-up，and China-ASEAN cooperation will enjoy still greater prospects.

CHINA TO ACCELERATE DOMESTIC STEPS FOR RCEP IMPLEMENTATION

China will intensify domestic efforts for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership（RCEP）to take effect and get implemented，so as to uphold free trade and expand win-win cooperation，a State Council executive meeting decided on December 1.

The RCEP，recently inked at the leaders’ meetings on East Asian cooperation，is of great significance for participating countries to jointly tackle the uncertainties in the international landscape，increase intra-regional trade，stabilize industrial and supply chains，enhance people’s well-being and facilitate China’s high-level opening-up，according to the meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang.

“The RCEP，as the world’s largest free trade agreement，brings benefits to all participating countries and serves as the most effective way to guard against uncertainties，”Li said.

The meeting required competent departments to fulfill due responsibilities in specifying task division and time frames in accordance with the agreement and accelerating domestic ratification procedures.

“As a participating country，China must make active efforts for the agreement to come into effect．This will demonstrate China’s support for openness，multilateralism and free trade，”Li said.

The meeting also decided on steps to strengthen publicity and training for localities，business associations and enterprises to familiarize them with the rules of the agreement，and shape deeper understanding of the opportunities and challenges brought by opening-up and competition at a larger scale and with higher standards.

“China takes the signing of the RCEP as a major step to further expand opening-up．We will make all preparations and take concrete actions to deliver on our commitments，”Li said.

CHINA，SINGAPORE SET PRIORITIES FOR FUTURE COOPERATION

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng met with Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat via video link on December 8.

During his meeting with Heng，Han，also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee，said this year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Singapore and bilateral relations have maintained strong momentum of development.

Leaders of the two countries have maintained close communication and provided strategic guidance for the development of bilateral ties，Han said，adding that new highlights have been achieved in anti-pandemic and development cooperation between the two countries，setting a benchmark for cooperation among countries in the region.

Han said China is willing to work with Singapore to jointly plan the direction and priorities of the next stage cooperation，continue high-quality Belt and Road development，deepen cooperation in regional development，upgrade bilateral innovation cooperation and jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade.

For his part，Heng said Singapore attaches great importance to strategic communication with China，and is willing to maintain close coordination with China，deepen synergy of development strategies and improve cooperation mechanisms.

Heng also said Singapore stands ready to strengthen vaccine cooperation with China to improve capabilities to address public health emergencies.

After their meeting，Han and Heng co-hosted the 16th China-Singapore Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation Meeting，the 21st China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Joint Steering Council Meeting，the 12th China-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Joint Steering Council Meeting and the fourth China-Singapore（Chongqing）Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity Joint Steering Council Meeting.

The two sides reviewed the implementation of high-level consensus and progress in pragmatic cooperation between the two countries，and exchanged views on bilateral cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative（BRI）and cooperation in the fields of economy，trade，finance and public health and on innovative development，cultural and people-to-people exchanges，and national cooperation programs.

The two sides agreed to enhance connectivity，financial support and tripartite cooperation as well as legal and judicial cooperation under the BRI framework，tap the potential of the new land-sea corridor，promote cooperation in key projects and foster flagship projects for scientific and technological innovation cooperation.

The two sides also agreed to start follow-up negotiations on the upgraded version of the China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement and promote the entry into force and implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership（RCEP）at an early date，so as to contribute to the economic recovery and development of the two countries and the region as a whole.

After the meetings，Han and Heng attended the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of China-Singapore diplomatic relations.

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng meets with Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat via video link in Beijing on December 8.（SHEN HONG/XINHUA）

CHINA，ASEAN PLEDGE EFFORTS TO SAFEGUARD REGIONAL STABILITY

The 11th China-ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Informal Meeting，co-chaired by Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister Wei Fenghe and Vietnamese Defense Minister Ngo Xuan Lich，was held via video link on December 9.

China and ASEAN countries have supported and assisted each other in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic，demonstrating profound friendship，said Wei.

China is ready to work with ASEAN to build a closer community with a shared future between the two sides，he added.

Wei said China-ASEAN defense cooperation has continuously been strengthened and deepened，setting a notable example of regional security cooperation．The Chinese military is willing to deepen pragmatic cooperation with military forces of ASEAN countries to cope with various security risks and challenges，he said.

ASEAN defense leaders extended congratulations on China’s successful pandemic containment and economic recovery and spoke highly of China’s efforts in carrying out defense cooperation with ASEAN.

They expressed the willingness to work with China to maintain stability in the South China Sea and safeguard the peaceful development of the region.

On December 10，the 7th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus was also held via video link.

LANCANG-MEKONG HYDROLOGICAL DATA SHARING PORTAL LAUNCHED

Guests pose for a photo at the launching ceremony of a website for sharing water resources information among six countries along the Lancang-Mekong River in Beijing on November 30．（LIU SHIPING/XINHUA）

A website for sharing water resources information among six countries along the Lancang-Mekong River was launched in Beijing on November 30，paving the way for enhanced sharing of hydrological data，knowledge，experience and technologies.

China has officially provided the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation（LMC）countries with the river’s hydrological information during the dry season starting from November 1 this year，said E Jingping，minister of water resources，at the launching ceremony of the website.

“We hope that the water resources authorities of the six countries will fully leverage the website and accelerate the building of the Lancang-Mekong Water Resources Cooperation Information Sharing Platform，offering policy basis and technical support for the comprehensive management，exploration and protection of water resources of Lancang-Mekong River，”the minister said.

The cooperation platform is expected to help the Lancang-Mekong countries better tackle climate change and natural disasters such as floods and droughts.

The LMC mechanism was launched in March 2016，and the water resources cooperation is among the LMC’s priorities.

ASEAN CUSTOMS TRANSIT SYSTEM RELEASED

The ASEAN Customs Transit System（ACTS）was officially released at a conference held online on November 30.

ASEAN Secretary-General Lin Yuhui said that the implementation of the ASEAN customs transit system will play an important role in promoting the seamless flow of goods in the ASEAN region．The system will serve as an excellent tool to strengthen ASEAN’s trade and production networks and establish a more unified market for ASEAN companies and consumers.

The ACTS is a digital customs transit management system designed to provide services for companies that transport goods across the border in ASEAN．The system has successfully implemented a pilot project for cross-border transshipment business from Singapore to Thailand via Malaysia．It is expected that it will be implemented in Myanmar，Brunei，Indonesia，the Philippines and other countries as soon as possible．The system is managed by the ACTS central management team of the ASEAN Secretariat based in Jakarta，Indonesia.

CHINA，ASEAN ADVANCE COOPERATION ON CULTURAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION

The 15th China-ASEAN Cultural Forum，featuring the protection of cultural heritage and tourism development，was held in the city of Guilin，south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region，on December 8.

“It is our responsibility to strengthen cultural inheritance and protection to promote mutual prosperity，”said Thai Minister of Culture Ittipol Khunpluem.

Myanmar Minister of Religious Affairs and Culture Thura U Aung Ko said that by blending the advice from and experiences of neighboring countries，and by cooperating with each other，China and ASEAN can protect and preserve their cultural heritage with effective strategies.

The forum was part of the 17th China-ASEAN Expo，which was held in late November in Nanning，capital of Guangxi．It saw an attendance of over 200 representatives from competent authorities，academia，industry associations and international organizations either online or offline．The participants had extensive and in-depth exchanges on the theme of protection and inheritance of cultural heritage and tourism development．During the forum，the first China-ASEAN Culture and Arts Week was held，where nearly 100 activities in six categories were held in Nanning，Guilin and other places，including theme concerts，drama，art education achievement exhibitions，dance，and film shows.

17TH CHINA-ASEAN EXPO

Indonesian artists perform a traditional dance at the 17th China-ASEAN Expo on November 29.（YU XIANGQUAN/VCG）

The 17th China-ASEAN Expo and the concurrent China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit took place in Nanning，the capital city of south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region，from November 27 to 30.

A total of 86 investment projects worth 263.87 billion yuan（around US$40.1 billion）were signed at the four-day event，an annual increase of 43.6 percent.

The investment projects in the fields of health，big data，logistics，new manufacturing，new materials，new energy and finance，accounted for 85.3 percent of the total.

With an exhibition area of 104，000 square meters，this year’s expo set up 5，400 booths for 1，668 enterprises，including Fortune 500 and industry-leading companies．In addition，1，956 enterprises from home and abroad participated virtually in the event.

More than 150 trade and investment promotion activities were held both online and offline during the expo.

The 18th China-ASEAN Expo is preliminarily scheduled for September 10-13，2021，with Laos continuing as the Country of Honor and Pakistan the Special Partner Country.

3RD CHINA-ASEAN HEALTH COOPERATION FORUM

The third China-ASEAN Health Cooperation Forum opened in Nanning，capital of south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region，on November 24.

The forum proposed the continued support of the World Health Organization to play a leading role in global health governance，improving and deepening the new long-term cooperation mechanism between China and ASEAN in disease prevention and control，and strengthening cooperation between China and ASEAN countries in jointly responding to public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the first forum in 2016，China and ASEAN countries have cooperated effectively in fields like infectious disaster control，traditional medicine，the health industry，human resources，and hospital management，said Ma Xiaowei，head of the National Health Commission，while addressing the forum via video link.

Facing the unexpected COVID-19 pandemic，China and ASEAN have worked together to make contributions to the global fight against the pandemic，said Huang Junhua，vice chairman of Guangxi.

The two-day event was hosted both online and offline by China's National Health Commission，National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine，and the regional government of Guangxi.

SINGAPORE EXPANDS GLOBAL INNOVATION ALLIANCE NETWORK TO SHENZHEN

Enterprise Singapore，the government agency championing enterprise development，said on December 8 in a media factsheet that the Global Innovation Alliance（GIA）network has been expanded to include Shenzhen，which will be the fourth GIA node in China.

It said that the addition of Shenzhen brings the total GIA network to 15 cities globally and will now enable Enterprise Singapore to support the foray of Singapore innovative startups and small and medium enterprises into China through Shenzhen.

Under a memorandum of understanding between Enterprise Singapore and the Shenzhen Municipal Service Bureau for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises signed in June，the Shenzhen authority will also establish a landing pad in Singapore to run innovation activities in Singapore for Shenzhen-incorporated entities.

The 15 GIA node cities are Shenzhen，Beijing，Suzhou and Shanghai in China; Manila in the Philippines; Jakarta in Indonesia; Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam; San Francisco in the United States; Berlin and Munich in Germany; Paris in France; London in Britain; Tokyo in Japan; Bangalore in India; and Bangkok in Thailand.