On August 27, the 15th China-Northeast Asia Expo kicked off in Changchun. Hu Chunhua, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech.

Hu Chunhua noted that President Xi Jinping attaches great importance to the China-Northeast Asia Expo. Since its inception 20 years ago, the Expo has actively promoted regional trade and investment cooperation in Northeast Asia under the spirit of openness and inclusiveness, emerging as the largest and highest-level economic and trade cooperation platform in the region.

He emphasized that Northeast Asian countries have their own distinct characteristics in economic development, making the region one of the most dynamic in the world. We will implement the spirit of the Central Conference on Work Related to Neighboring Countries and work with other Northeast Asian countries toward the common vision of building a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home. This will involve fostering regional common development, deepen industrial cooperation, advance green development, and continuously enhance people-to-people exchanges, thereby promoting the building of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries and jointly creating a brighter future for Northeast Asia.

Huang Qiang, Secretary of the CPC Jilin Provincial Committee and Director of the Standing Committee of the Jilin Provincial People's Congress, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. Hu Yuting, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Jilin Provincial Committee and Governor of Jilin Province, presided over the ceremony and Zhu Guoxian, Chairman of the CPPCC Jilin Provincial Committee, was in attendance.

On behalf of the CPC Jilin Provincial Committee and the People's Government of Jilin Province, Huang Qiang extended a warm welcome to guests from home and abroad. He stated that over the past two decades since the inception of the China-Northeast Asia Expo, fruitful exchanges and cooperation have been achieved among all parties involved. The path of regional development has become increasingly broad, and the flower of friendship has blossomed even more vibrantly. Jilin serves as a crucial gateway for China's "Belt and Road" initiative in opening up to the north. With its prominent geographical advantages, unique resource endowments, solid industrial foundation, and profound cultural heritage, Jilin represents a vast and dynamic land full of promising opportunities. "We will conscientiously implement the important consensus reached between President Xi Jinping and leaders of various countries," He said. "By fully leveraging the platform of the China-Northeast Asia Expo, we aim to promote mutually beneficial economic and trade exchanges, foster mutually reinforcing industrial systems, enhance interconnected infrastructure, and encourage mutual learning through cultural and people-to-people exchanges. Together, we will jointly write a new chapter in regional cooperation in Northeast Asia in this era."

Uchral Nyam-Osor, First Deputy Prime Minister of Mongolia and Minister of Economy and Development, delivered a written speech, which was read out by Batkhuu Idesh, State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Development of Mongolia. Yan Dong, Vice Minister of Commerce of China, Noh Geon-gi, Director General for Trade Negotiations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the ROK, Li Xingqian, Vice Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and Jens Hildebrandt, Global Vice President of BASF, delivered speeches successively. Yun Jong Ho, Minister of External Economic Relations of the DPRK, and Vladimir Ilichev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia, sent congratulatory letters.

Other attendees at the opening ceremony included Zhao Ge, Chief Engineer of the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China; Damdin Tsogtbaatar, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Justice of the State Great Hural of Mongolia and Member of Parliament; L. Tumurchodur, Governor of Mongolia's Tuv Province; Ravil Akhmetshin, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Tatarstan to the Russian Federation; Ivan Krupko, Governor of Gomel Region, Belarus; Jambaltsuren, State Secretary of the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry of Mongolia; Park Yang-woo, Advisor to the Korea-China Exchange Association; Paata Kalandadze, Ambassador of Georgia to China; and Lim Byung-jin, Secretary-General of the Association of North East Asia Regional Governments.

Before the opening ceremony, Hu Chunhua, accompanied by Huang Qiang, Hu Yuting, and Zhu Guoxian, toured the China-Northeast Asia Expo exhibition halls and interacted with heads of participating organizations.

Also attending the opening ceremony were relevant leaders from Jilin Province and Changchun City, officials from the General Office of the CPPCC National Committee and relevant departments of the Ministry of Commerce, leaders from related provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) and major cities, representatives of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, diplomatic envoys in China, heads of well-known business associations at home and abroad, executives from Fortune Global 500 and China 500 enterprises, executives from some central state-owned enterprises, and officials from relevant provincial departments and municipal (prefecture) governments across Jilin Province.

Source: Jilin Daily  Editor: Liu Jiadi