Chinese state councilor to visit Vietnam, attend subregional summit

BEIJING - Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend the sixth summit of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation, and pay an official visit to Vietnam from Friday to Monday at the invitation of the Vietnamese government, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Thursday.

Spokesperson Lu Kang made the announcement at a routine news briefing, saying that the GMS is an important platform for economic cooperation in the subregion and has made positive contributions to subregional countries over the years.

He said Wang's attendance at the summit in Hanoi shows that China attaches great importance to boosting subregional cooperation and developing friendly ties with subregional countries.

Wang will attend a closed door meeting, a large scale meeting and a business summit during the GMS, with aims to deepen political mutual trust, enhance friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between subregional countries, and promote subregional cooperation to a higher level, according to the spokesperson.

Countries under the GMS program, which focuses on increased regional cooperation and integration for inclusive and sustainable development, include Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

During his stay in Vietnam, Wang will meet with Vietnamese leaders, and hold talks with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, so as to further implement consensus reached during Chinese President Xi Jinping's last visit to Vietnam, Lu said.

Wang's visit is also expected to strengthen bilateral strategic exchanges, enhance mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, and push for further development of the China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, he said.

Wang is the first senior Chinese official to visit Vietnam since China's new government took office, which shows that China attaches great importance to developing China-Vietnam ties as bilateral ties continue to get better, he said.