Dear Dr. Narongchai, Chairman of the Steering Committee,

Dear Mr. Suriyan, Executive Director of Mekong Institute(MI),

Dear colleagues,

Good afternoon. It gives me great pleasure to gather with you in the beautiful ancient city of Siem Reap. This is my first time to meet with all the Steering Committee members face to face, and I would like to extend my appreciation to the government of Cambodia and MI Secretariat for the thoughtful arrangements. I thank Dr. Narongchai and Mr. Suriyan for their briefings on the work of MI, and China affirms the progress made by MI this year. I believe the meetings today and tomorrow will contribute to promoting the work of MI and enhancing the development consensus of all parties.

Dear colleagues,

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Belt and Road Initiative as well as the 7th anniversary of Lancang-Mekong Cooperation. Over the years, China has been upholding firmly the neighborhood policy of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness, and enhancing friendship, mutual trust and converging interests with Mekong countries. Jointly, we have built the sub-region into an exemplar for Belt and Road cooperation, a pacesetter for implementing the Global Development Initiative, a pioneer for implementing the Global Security Initiative and a front runner for implementing the Global Civilization Initiative, towards a Lancang-Mekong community with a shared future in the new era.

The level of connectivity among our six countries gets higher and higher. The Siem Reap Angkor International Airport is a landmark project of Belt and Road cooperation between China and Cambodia. Since it officially opened to traffic more than one month ago, it has handled more than 100,000 passenger trips. The Air Silk Road is accelerating the connecting between Angkor and other part of the world. Up to November, the China-Laos Railway has been operating for 23 months, with over 23 million passengers and over 27.8 million tons of cargo transported. Projects including the China-Vietnam Railway Express, China-Laos-Thai Full-Range Train and China-Myanmar Oil and Gas Pipeline have set examples of South-South cooperation and high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. 

Economic and trade cooperation among our six countries maintains strong momentum. In 2022, the total trade volume between China and Mekong countries reached 416 billion USD, up by 5% year-on-year, which is double that of 7 years ago. The New Western Land-Sea Corridor effectively connects the big markets of both sides and creates convenient conditions for high-quality products from Mekong countries to enter China. Utilizing the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Special Fund, our six countries have conducted more than 700 livelihood projects in the sub-region, benefiting thousands of families.

Recently, the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation was held successfully in China, attended by over 10,000 registered representatives from 151 countries including all 5 Mekong countries. The Forum witnessed the reaching of 458 outcomes and conclusion of commercial contracts worth 97.2 billion USD at the CEO Conference. In the last ten years, China and its BRI partners have implemented more than 3,000 infrastructure, production and livelihood projects. China’s direct investment in BRI partner countries has exceeded 240 billion USD, which in turn galvanized nearly one trillion USD of investment. The Belt and Road cooperation has created a total of 420,000 local jobs and lifted 40 million people out of poverty. As President Xi Jinping emphasized at the Opening Ceremony of the Forum, China will work with all parties involved to deepen Belt and Road partnerships of cooperation, usher this cooperation into a new stage of high-quality development, and make relentless efforts to achieve modernization for all countries.

Dear colleagues,

At present, the international security situation witnesses chaos, the world economic recovery remains sluggish, and challenges such as climate change, food and energy crises are intertwined. Countries are struggling to implement the 2030 Agenda. In September 2021, President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI) in order to build international consensus on development and foster new drivers for global development. Up to now, more than 100 countries and international organizations expressed support for the GDI, and over 70 countries including all 5 Mekong countries have joined the GDI Group of Friends. China has established the 4 billion USD Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, mobilized a special fund of 12 billion USD from domestic and foreign financial institutions, and established a Global Development Project Pool and a Capital Pool. Over 200 “small yet smart” projects have been implemented benefiting over 60 developing countries. China stands ready to work with Mekong countries and MI to accelerate the implementation of the GDI, deepening the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation to achieve an inclusive, resilient and sustainable economic recovery in our sub-region.

Dear colleagues,

This year, in the face of complex and challenging situation both at home and abroad, China’s economy continues to demonstrate great resilience and vibrancy. In the first three quarters, China’s GDP reached 91.3 trillion RMB, a year-on-year increase of 5.2%. Personal income increased by 6% and consumption contributed 83% to GDP growth. Investment in high-tech industries increased by 11%, and new energy vehicle sales increased by more than 30%. Last month, the IMF scaled up its projected growth rate of China’s economy in 2023 to 5.4 percent, saying that China remains the single largest contributor to global growth and will bring more opportunities to the world.

As a member of MI, China has been strongly supporting the work of MI for many years. As the largest donor, we have been supporting MI to carry out projects in agriculture, poverty reduction, digital connectivity, energy connectivity and other areas, which have effectively enhanced the capacity building of sub-regional countries. This year, with China’s support, the Mekong Forum and the MI Council meeting for the first time was held in Yunnan province of China and achieved good results. China supported and actively participated in the Mid-Term Review of MI’s Strategic Plan 2021-2025 and played a constructive role.

In face of the changing situation of global and regional development, we look forward to MI to continue to steadily implement Strategic Plan 2021-2025, promote solidarity, cooperation and strategic alignment among member states, and achieve common development.  China will continue to support the work of MI, stand together with Mekong countries and MI to meet challenges and share opportunities, create a more integrated Lancang-Mekong economic development belt, and promote the construction of a peaceful and prosperous Lancang-Mekong community with a shared future in the new era.

Thank you.