China, Singapore set priorities for future cooperation

BEIJING -- China and Singapore on Monday agreed to further synergize development strategies and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation to advance their ties.

The pledge came out of a meeting between Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli and Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean in Beijing.

China attaches great importance to developing relations with Singapore and is willing to make joint efforts with the country to sincerely implement the consensus reached by leaders of both sides, said Zhang.

China and Singapore established "a partnership of all-round cooperation keeping with the times" during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Singapore in November 2015, he said.

President Xi and Premier Li Keqiang met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong respectively in 2016, reaching broad consensus on the next steps in the development of bilateral ties, he added.

Zhang called on the two sides to deepen political mutual trust, cement public support and strengthen cooperation to push for greater development of bilateral ties.

Teo applauded the smooth development of three major cooperative projects, namely the Suzhou Industrial Park, the Tianjin Eco-City and the Chongqing Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity.

Singapore is ready to take part in the Belt and Road Initiative and enhance cooperation with China in such areas as infrastructure connectivity, finance and conducting joint training programs, he said.

Zhang and Teo also co-chaired four high-level cooperative meetings between China and Singapore, including the 13th China-Singapore Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation Meeting, the 18th China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Joint Steering Council Meeting, the 9th China-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Joint Steering Council Meeting, and the First China-Singapore (Chongqing) Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity Joint Steering Council Meeting.

During the four meetings, the two sides agreed on a number of important matters in economic transition, financial cooperation, people-to-people exchanges, and inclusive and sustainable development.

After the meetings, Zhang and Teo attended a signing ceremony for a series of cooperative documents on science and technology, intellectual property, information and telecommunications, and culture.

Teo's visit to China runs from Feb 26 to March 1.