Vice Premier urges closer economic co-op in NE Asia

BEIJING—Chinese Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan on Sunday called on to expand cooperation and improve mechanism in a bid to accelerate the regional economic cooperation in the Northeast Asia.
Zeng made the remarks at the high level forum on Northeast Asia Economic and Trade Cooperation of the 3rd Northeast Asia Investment and Trade Expo that opened Sunday in Changchun, capital of northeast China’s Jilin Province.
Northeast Asia has huge potential in deepening cooperation and witnessed booming economic growth and robust trade and investment activities during the past few years, the vice premier said.
“The countries in the region, with close geography and long friendly people-to-people relations, should enhance exchanges and cooperation to foster a mutually beneficial relationship of common development,” he stated. Zeng proposed that China would like to work with other countries in the region to boost infrastructure construction including building Dalian Port into an international shipping hub and construction of railways and roads to Russia, Mongolia and North Korea.
“China will accelerate economic cooperation and trade in major border cities and strengthen cooperation with other countries in energy, raw materials and mineral resources.”
The vice premier hoped other countries can improve services in custom declaration, inspection and quarantine, and offer business visas, and increase bilateral and multilateral dialogues to work out a mechanism that meets the needs and interests of each country.
Wang Min, Party chief of Jilin Province, said at the opening ceremony that China’s strategy to revitalize the northeast old industrial bases, has provided enormous opportunities for the region’s development and the expo serves as a platform for cooperation between China and countries in northeast Asia.
The five-day expo, with the theme of “opportunity, exchange, cooperation and development”, has attracted more than 50,000 investors and merchants from 62 countries and regions.
The expo is co-sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, the Office of the Leading Group of Revitalizing the Old Industrial Base in Northeast China under the State Council, and the Jilin provincial government.—Xinhua