The delegation of officials from Mekong countries, upon the invitation of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), had a series of visits and exchangein Beijing from 20 to 22 June 2016.
After attending the welcoming ceremony on 20 June, the delegation visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China and had an exchange with Ms. Mao Ning, Counsellor of Asian Affairs Department. Counsellor Mao Ning briefed the development of ASEAN-China relations, especially the new progress of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) and China’s efforts. She introduced that H.E. Li Keqiang, Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, proposed the establishment of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Framework at the 17th ASEAN-China Summit, echoing Thailand’s initiative on sustainable development of the Lancang-Mekong Sub-region. The building of the LMC mechanism had been constantly push forward with the joint efforts of all sides. The first LMC Leaders’ Meeting was successfully held in Hainan, China in March 2016. It was encouraging to witness the rapidness and high efficiency of the development of the LMC mechanism which had been realized in about one year since its proposition. The LMC would be conducive to the social-economic development of the six countries, as well as the building of the ASEAN Community. One of the striking features of the LMC was its emphasis on pragmatic cooperation. The implementation of the “early harvest” projects would benefit the people of all member countries. The Chinese side was actively implementing the important consensus of the leaders, and would like to promote practical cooperation in the five key priority areas, namely connectivity, production capacity, cross-border economic cooperation, water resources, agriculture and poverty reduction. This would boost sub-regional development and inject new momentum into ASEAN-China relations.
The delegation expressed its appreciation for the support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. They commended the significance of strengthening the LMC as Mekong Countries and China were close neighbors. The building of the LMC mechanism had achieved remarkable progress and the “early harvest” projects had been put forward by all sides. The next step was to join hands to implement the consensus of the leaders and achieve tangible results.
The delegation visited International Poverty Reduction Centre in China (IPRCC). Mr. Tan Weiping, Deputy Director of IPRCC introduced its main functions and China’s achievements in poverty reduction, and put forward proposals for the cooperation between China and Mekong Countries in poverty reduction. He stressed that poverty reduction was one of the five key priority areas of the LMC. To boost cooperation in this area, IPRCC would continue to host the ASEAN Plus Three Village Leaders Exchange Programme and the China-ASEAN Forum on Social Development and Poverty Reduction, cooperate with Thailand to carry out capacity building programme on poverty reduction of Mekong Countries, and strongly support Cambodia’s “early harvest” programme in poverty reduction. The two sides warmly interacted and exchanged ideas in capacity building, IPRCC’s research and China’s working mechanism on poverty reduction.
The delegation visited ACC on the same day. They were briefed on the main functions and recent activities of ACC, toured the exhibition hall, and had exchange with ACC officials. They praised the role of ACC in promoting ASEAN-China functional cooperation in the areas of trade, investment, education, culture, tourism, information, etc, and thanked ACC’s thoughtful arrangement of this visit. They expressed the willingness to strengthen communication and cooperation with ACC through this visit, and expected ACC to make greater contributions to support the LMC.
On 21 June, the delegation visited the Zhongguancun National Demonstration Zone and the terminal of South-to-North Water Diversion Project. They were left with deep impressions by these visits, and expressed admiration for China’s achievements in independent innovation on science and technology, as well as the construction and utilization of hydro-project. The delegation also toured the World Heritage，the Summer Palace, and enjoyed traditional performance in Laoshe Tea house to experience the charm of Chinese culture.
In the morning of 22 June, the delegation visited China Institute of International Studies (CIIS). Ms. Tang Qifang, Associate Research Fellow of CIIS, introduced her views on the LMC, summed up comprehensively the background and characteristics of the LMC mechanism, as well as China’s efforts in promoting the LMC. She put forward suggestions on expanding future cooperation, including working together to maintain peace and stability, prioritizing the development, focusing on concrete joint programmes, upholding the spirit of openness and inclusiveness. The participants welcomed the briefing of Ms. Tang Qifang, and thought it was rich in content, informative and helpful in improving understanding of the LMC. In the afternoon, the delegation left Beijing and continued its visit in Nanjing.
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