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BRI cooperation, based on principle of planning, building & benefiting together – Xi
Chinese President Mr. Xi Jinping says that the Belt and Road cooperation is based on the principle of “planning together, building together, and benefiting together.”
“China can only do well when the world is doing well. When China does well, the world will get even better,” he said.
He made these remarks while addressing the 3rd Belt and Road Forum opening ceremony which kicked off at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing this morning (18).
What has been achieved in the past 10 years demonstrates that Belt and Road cooperation is on the right side of history. It represents the advancing of our times, and it is the right path forward, President Xi added.
China will work with its BRI partner countries to strengthen the building of multilateral cooperation platforms covering energy, taxation, finance, green development, disaster reduction, anti-corruption, think tank, media, culture and other fields, President Xi further said.
8 steps
President Xi also announced eight major steps China will take to support the joint pursuit of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.
These are : building a multidimensional Belt and Road connectivity network, supporting an open world economy, carrying out practical cooperation, promoting green development, advancing scientific and technological innovation, supporting people-to-people exchanges, promoting integrity-based Belt and Road cooperation and strengthening institutional building for international Belt and Road cooperation.
Historic opportunity
Meanwhile, addressing the event, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday said the Belt and Road Initiative provides historic opportunity while hailing its contribution to global infrastructure.
The UN chief also said that there can be no development without development support, and many developing countries will be starved of the infrastructure they desperately need.
“This is why this meeting and the Belt and Road (Initiative) are so important,” he added.
“The Belt and Road (Initiative) demonstrates that we have a historic opportunity to build more than green cities, communities and transportation and power systems,” he said.
“Together, with the contribution of the Belt and Road Initiative, we can turn the infrastructure emergency to infrastructure opportunity,” said Guterres.
A host of world leaders
The opening ceremony of the 3rd Belt and Road Initiative forum was participated by world leaders from 20 nations as well as representatives from over 130 countries and 30 international organizations.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also addressed the gathering.
The forum also featured three high-level sub-forums on connectivity, green development, digital economy, as well as several seminars.
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe attended the opening ceremony, where leaders from various states were accorded military honours and gathered for a group photograph alongside the Chinese President.
– Shanika Jayasekara reporting from Beijing
(Pics : Xinhua)
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World Bank Group President meets with President AKD (Pics)
President of the World Bank Group Ajay Banga met with President Anura Kumara Disanayake this afternoon (07) at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
This visit marks a milestone, as it is the first time in nearly two decades that a World Bank Group President has visited Sri Lanka.
During the meeting, discussions centred on strengthening collaboration to support Sri Lanka’s future development agenda. Priority areas identified included digitalisation, tourism, agriculture and infrastructure development, with particular emphasis on identifying short-term rewards, including advancing development in the Northern and Eastern provinces.
The Sri Lankan government’s efforts to establish a robust legal framework conducive to attracting new investments and recent policy initiatives were also discussed during the meeting.
Attendees at the meeting included Trevor Kincaid, Special Advisor – World Bank Group, David Sislen, Country Division Director – Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka – World Bank Group, Imad Fakhoury, Regional Director – South Asia International Finance Corporation and Gevorg Sargsyan, Country Manager – Maldives & Sri Lanka¸ World Bank Group.
Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development Anil Jayantha Fernando, Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Harshana Suriyapperuma and Senior Additional Secretary to the President Russell Aponsu, along with several other dignitaries, also attended the occasion.
(President’s Media Division)
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SL – Vietnam sign 04 MoUs (Pics)
Four Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and one Agreement were signed yesterday (May 05) between Sri Lanka and Vietnam, in the presence of President Anura Kumara Disanayake and President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Luong Cuong.
Among the agreements signed was a bilateral pact on enhancing cooperation and mutual support in customs affairs between the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Additionally, an MoU between the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam and the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development of Sri Lanka on cooperation in machinery and equipment manufacturing, an MoU between the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Department of Agriculture of Sri Lanka on cooperation in agriculture, an MoU between the Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute (BIDTI) of Sri Lanka and the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and an MoU between the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and the Sri Lanka Export Development Board on trade promotion cooperation.
These agreements aim to facilitate knowledge sharing and the exchange of diplomats, experts, officials, scholars and researchers, while also encouraging the organization and participation in academic and research programmes, training initiatives and conferences related to diplomacy.
They also provide a platform for a broad range of trade promotion activities, including the exchange of trade and market intelligence, joint participation in trade fairs and exhibitions in both countries, and the organization of business networking events for private sector representatives.
It is expected that this enhanced cooperation will unlock significant market opportunities for both countries, particularly in the sectors of value-added agriculture, fisheries, apparel and Processed food.
The signing took place following bilateral discussions held at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi earlier in the morning.
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President pays homage at Bai Dinh Pagoda (Pics)
As part of the on-going state visit to Vietnam, President Anura Kumara Disanayake visited the Bai Dinh Pagoda, one of the largest Buddhist temple complexes in Southeast Asia yesterday afternoon (04), where he paid homage and received blessings.
The President received a warm and heartfelt welcome from the Vietnamese people, who had gathered near the entrance of the temple, waving the national flags of both Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
A large crowd lined the pathway within the temple grounds to catch a glimpse of the Sri Lankan President, expressing their respect and goodwill by waving the two nations’ flags.
Upon reaching the main Buddha shrine, President Disnayake paid his respects. The resident monks then chanted Seth Pirith and invoked blessings on the President.
Subsequently, the President paid homage at the Sri Maha Bodhi sapling on the temple grounds, a sacred branch from the Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, which was gifted to the Bai Dinh Pagoda and planted there in 2023.
The outer wall constructed around the sacred Bodhi under the technical guidance of Sri Lanka’s Central Cultural Fund was also officially declared open by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on this occasion.
Later the President planted a sapling of the sacred Sal tree within the temple premises, and observed the commemorative plaque marking the occasion.
As a gesture of reverence, President Disanayake presented a memento to the Chief Incumbent of the temple.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism, Vijitha Herath, along with other members of the Sri Lankan delegation, were also present for the occasion.
(President’s Media Division)
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