The month’s latest events

Xi Meets?Singaporean President

On May 14， Chinese President Xi Jinping met with President Halimah Yacob of Singapore at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi pointed out that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had just attended opening ceremonies of the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation and the 2019 International Horticultural Exhibition in Beijing and that Madame President was in China for the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations （CDAC）， which ideally showcased the close relationship between China and Singapore. As reciprocal development opportunities， China and Singapore have marched forward hand in hand for a long time and enjoyed extensive converging interests. The two countries should maintain the tradition of high-level exchange and provide strategic guidance for the development of bilateral relations. The Chinese nation has a tradition of inheritance and innovation. Joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative has been a process of inclusiveness and friendship as well as the biggest current development opportunity for China-Singapore relations. Both sides should forge high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative into a new business card for China-Singapore cooperation and make good and full use of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and third-party market cooperation to produce results as early as possible. Both sides should firmly support economic globalization and multilateralism， promote unity among Asian countries， focus on cooperation and leverage the CDAC as an opportunity to jointly make Asia a beautiful home. “Our circle of friends will become larger and larger over the process of building a multi-polar world，” stressed the Chinese president.

Halimah Yacob congratulated Xi on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Peoples Republic of China and opined that it is the right time for China to organize the CDAC， which is conducive to exploring better ways to benefit people around the world. Singapore-China relations are enjoying positive development， and major bilateral cooperation projects have become models for mutually beneficial cooperation between countries. Singapore has firmly supported the Belt and Road Initiative from the very beginning and stands ready to join China in deepening exchange and cooperation in economics， trade and people-to-people and cultural engagement to benefit the two peoples as well as jointly upholding the rules-based multilateral trading system which is of vital importance to various countries， especially small and medium-sized countries.

Xi， Malaysian King Exchange Congratulations

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Malaysian King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah exchanged congratulations on the 45th anniversary of their countries diplomatic relations on May 31.

China and Malaysia are friendly neighbors and important cooperation partners， noted Xi in a congratulatory message.

“Over the past 45 years， the bilateral relationship has been constantly strengthened， and practical cooperation has produced extensive benefits for the two peoples and made positive contributions to regional stability and development，” Xi added. “Currently， both China and Malaysia are at a very important stage of development， and bilateral cooperation enjoys broad prospects.”

“I attach great importance to China-Malaysia relations，” he continued， voicing hope that the two sides would seize the opportunities of the Belt and Road to better synergize their development strategies to further enrich their comprehensive strategic partnership and add fresh impetus to regional development.

In his message， Sultan Abdullah said that Malaysia is pleased to see bilateral relations bearing fruits and friendship between the two peoples deepening over the past 45 years.

Malaysia earnestly hopes that bilateral relations will continue to advance to bring more benefits to the two peoples， he added.

The same day， Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and his Malaysian counterpart， Mahathir Mohamad， also exchanged congratulations.

China and Malaysia established diplomatic relations on May 31， 1974.

Xi Congratulates New Thai King

Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn on being formally crowned on May 4.

On behalf of the Chinese government and people， and in his own name， Xi expressed sincere congratulation in a message and best wishes to the king and the Thai people.

The king is an old friend of the Chinese people and has been active and supportive towards the cause of friendship between the two countries for a long time， Xi said in the message.

“I attach great importance to the development of China-Thailand relations and stand ready to make joint efforts with you to carry forward the traditional China-Thailand friendship， deepen cooperation in building the Belt and Road jointly， and push forward the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries to make greater headway，” Xi said.

Xi wished the Kingdom of Thailand prosperity and its people happiness and good health.

The monarch is now known as King Rama X， the 10th king of the Chakri Dynasty founded in the late 18th Century.

“Most people in Thailand have never seen any coronation before，” said Korn Dabbaransi， president of the Thai-Chinese Friendship Association. “So everyone is looking forward to witnessing a coronation for the first time.”

China helps Lao Ministry Upgrade its Information System

A project was launched in the Lao capital Vientiane on May 21 to upgrade the information system of the Lao Ministry of Industry and Commerce with the help of China.

Over the next 20 months， Chinese engineering and IT companies will upgrade the computer room of the ministry， install a remote video conference system， develop an electronic file system and conduct information technology training for Lao technicians.

Upon completion， the project will provide the Lao Ministry of Industry and Commerce with convenient， fast and easy-to-manage public services， promote information sharing between the central and local governments of Laos， and enhance independent development capabilities in handling information and data in Laos.

Counselor of the Economic and Commercial Office of the Chinese Embassy in Laos Wang Qihui and Laos Deputy Industry and Commerce Minister Somchith Inthamith attended the ceremony and cut the ribbon for the launch of the project.

China， Cambodia to Enhance Bilateral Ties

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn in Beijing on May 31 and called for closer bilateral ties and cooperation under regional frameworks.

Hailing the profound traditional friendship， Li said China supports Cambodia in choosing a development path in accordance with its national situation.

China stands ready to enhance the synergy of development strategies with Cambodia， promote cooperation in key areas and jointly build a China-Cambodia community with a shared future， stressed Li.

He said China is willing to intensify coordination and collaboration with Cambodia under the frameworks of China-ASEAN and Lancang-Mekong cooperation and forge ahead with negotiations on the Code of Conduct （COC） in the South China Sea to safeguard a stable environment for development in the region.

China backs Cambodia hosting the Asia-Europe Meeting （ASEM） in 2020， Li added.

Prak Sokhonn， who made an official visit to China from May 30 to June 1， said Cambodia appreciates Chinas long-term assistance and is willing to further strengthen high-level exchange and mutual support on regional and international issues and promote the building of a Cambodia-China community with a shared future.

169 Cooperation Projects Inked

A total of 169 cooperation projects have been inked under the framework of a China-Singapore connectivity initiative.

The value of the projects exceeded US$26.3 billion by the end of April， revealed Han Baochang， head of the management bureau of the China-Singapore （Chongqing） Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity， at the West China International Fair for Investment and Trade.

Cooperation is mainly spread throughout four major areas： financial services， air transportation， logistics and information and communications technologies， Han said.

The China-Singapore （Chongqing） Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity aims to conduct pilot cooperation in various fields. It is the third cooperation initiative between China and Singapore following Suzhou Industrial Park built in eastern Chinas Jiangsu Province in 1994 and Tianjin Eco-city， which opened in 2008 in northern China.

Chinese Defense Minister on South China Sea

Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe delivered a keynote speech entitled “China and International Security Cooperation” at the 18th Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore， which was held from May 31 to June 2.

“The current situation in the South China Sea is improving towards greater stability，” Wei declared. “This can be attributed to the common efforts of every country in the region. However， there are still people trying to turn a profit by stirring up trouble in the region.”

He noted that over 100，000 ships sail through the South China Sea each year， and “none have been threatened.”

However， in recent years， some countries from far outside the region have become present in the South China Sea to flex muscles in the name of freedom of navigation. “The large-scale force projection and offensive operations in the region are the most serious destabilizing factors creating uncertainty in the South China Sea，” he said.

The victims of any chaos in the South China Sea will be regional countries， and China and ASEAN countries have made steady progress in negotiating the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea， he added.

Wei noted that Chinas construction on its South China Sea islands and reefs is legitimate and defensive in nature. “It is the legitimate right of a sovereign state to carry out construction on its own territory，” he explained. “China built limited defense facilities on the islands and reefs for self-defense.”

“When threats persist in the region， we have to build defenses，” he explained. “When facing heavily armed warships and military aircraft， how could we turn a blind eye and not build some defense facilities？” he asked.

He also refuted the characterization of “militarization” of Chinas defensive construction on its South China Sea islands and reefs at the Q&A session： “Anyone with any military sense would deem it far from militarized.”

China， Vietnam Put on Border Exchange Gala

The China and Vietnam Border Inhabitants Gala was held from May 19 to 20 in Chinas border city of Jingxi in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region， with spotlight on strengthening friendly exchange in the border area.

During the event， diverse activities were presented including musical performances by popular singers from the two countries and folk song festivals featuring ordinary residents as well as tourist promotion activities.

Famous scholars and writers were invited to attend cultural exchange events during the gala and discuss topics such as cross-border cooperation programs concerning Chinas Belt and Road Initiative.

Guangxi， which borders Vietnam， plays a key role in Chinas cooperation with ASEAN. The annual gala has been running since 2009 and hosted by a number of border cities in Guangxi including Fangcheng， Dongxing and Pingxiang.

Mekong Tourism Forum

Six countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion （GMS） discussed deepening tourism ties at a forum held in southwestern Chinas Yunnan Province from May 28 to 29.

The Mekong Tourism Forum was themed on tourism as a driver for cultural heritage preservation and poverty alleviation.

Over 45.3 million trips were made between China and GMS countries in 2018， up 7.6 percent year on year. Thailand， Vietnam and Cambodia received 10.4 million， 7.8 million and 2 million Chinese visitors in 2018， respectively.

Zhang Xu， vice minister of culture and tourism of China， told the conference that the Chinese government attaches great importance to tourism exchange and cooperation with GMS countries and has built multi-level and multi-form cooperation mechanisms and platforms.

In March 2018， leaders of GSM adopted three documents including a joint declaration and an action plan for 2018-2022， pledging stronger multifaceted cooperation including on transport， agriculture， tourism， the environment and e-commerce.

Myanmar-China Think Tank Forum

The third Myanmar-China Think Tank Forum kicked off on May 22 in Yangon， Myanmar， featuring about 40 experts from both countries.

Focusing on the Belt and Road Initiative and Myanmar-China Economic Corridor， discussions and views were exchanged under four topics： “Economic Cooperation and Border Trade，” “People-to-people Connectivity，” “Socio-Economic Development” and “Cross-border Ethnic Communities.”

Nyunt Maung Shein， chairman of the Myanmar Institute of Strategic and International Studies （Myanmar-ISIS）， stressed the need to conduct deeper discussions regarding challenges and opportunities in implementation of projects under the Memorandum of Understanding to establish the China-Myanmar economic corridor.

The forum was jointly organized by Myanmar-ISIS， Chinas Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences， Chinese Academy of South and Southeast Asian Studies （Kunming） and Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in Chinas Yunnan Province.

Li Xiaoyan， counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar， expressed belief that the think tank forum would bring mutual understanding between the two countries experts on the future potential of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The first and second of this forum were both held in Mangshi， capital of Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture， in 2017 and 2018.