Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore

On the afternoon of March 31, President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore, who was on an official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People.
 

On the afternoon of March 31, President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore, who was on an official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photographed by Ding Haitao, reporter from Xinhua News Agency

President Xi Jinping pointed out that China and Singapore are important partners in cooperation, and China Singapore relations have always demonstrated forward-looking, strategic, and exemplary characteristics, which not only effectively promoted the development and revitalization of both countries, but also set a benchmark for regional countries. China has placed Singapore as a priority in neighboring diplomacy. During your current visit to China, we have upgraded the relationship between China and Singapore to a comprehensive and high-quality forward-looking partnership, indicating the direction for the future development of bilateral relations. China is willing to strengthen strategic communication with Singapore, deepen strategic docking, and effectively make "high-quality" the most distinctive symbol of cooperation between China and Singapore.

President Xi Jinping pointed out that among Southeast Asian countries, Singapore has the deepest participation in China's reform and opening up, and has the closest integration of interests with China. China is comprehensively promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with Chinese path to modernization. China's economic and social vitality will be further released. China is willing to share important opportunities with Singapore and other countries willing to cooperate with China. China is willing to continue to make good use of the conference platform of the bilateral cooperation mechanism between China and Singapore, strengthen the construction of new land and sea channels, deepen the digital and green transformation and third-party cooperation, and actively and steadily promote personnel exchanges between the two countries.

President Xi Jinping pointed out that over the years, the Asian region has maintained a good momentum of overall peace, stability, rapid development, and overall rise. Through their diligence and wisdom, regional countries have embarked on an Asian characteristic development path of independence, mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit, openness, inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation. Against the backdrop of the accelerated evolution of the current century of changes in the world, we should particularly cherish and maintain the hard-won momentum of development in the Asian region, jointly safeguard the dividends of regional peace, safeguard the correct direction of economic globalization and regional economic integration, resolutely oppose hegemonism, explicitly resist "decoupling and disconnection", and allow no country to deprive the Asian people of their right to pursue a better and happy life.
 

On the afternoon of March 31, President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore, who was on an official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photographed by Ding Haitao, reporter from Xinhua News Agency

Lee Hsien Loong expressed his pleasure to visit China again after several years and see that economic vitality is rapidly recovering throughout China. I have strong confidence in the resilience of the Chinese economy and believe that it will continue to develop well. Singapore and other neighboring countries are looking forward to further deepening economic cooperation with China. Singapore and China have strong friendship, deep understanding and mutual trust, and their relations have always maintained a good momentum of development. Singapore looks forward to communicating with the new Chinese government as soon as possible, promoting cooperation on major projects such as connectivity, and taking the completion of the negotiations on the upgrading of the Singapore China Free Trade Agreement as an opportunity to send a clear message to the outside world that China will continue to deepen its opening-up and that Singapore is committed to further deepening cooperation between Singapore and China.

The two sides also exchanged in-depth views on major country relations and international and regional issues of common concern.

Wang Yi, Qin Gang, and others attended the meeting.