China and Czech Republic Establish Strategic Partnership

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with President Milos Zeman of the Czech Republic in Prague on March 29， 2016.

Xi said that China was willing to consolidate the two nations traditional friendship， enhance political mutual trust， and push practical cooperation for more new achievements， so as to pass down the China-Czech friendship from generation to generation. Milos Zeman said that the Czech Republic was willing to deepen political mutual trust and mutually beneficial cooperation with China， and to continue playing a positive role in pushing forward cooperation between Central and Eastern European countries and China. It was also committed to becoming a gateway for China to the EU， as well as a transportation， logistics， and financial hub.

The two heads of state reached a number of important consensuses， agreeing to establish a China-Czech strategic partnership in order to seek wider common interests， and carry out cooperation at deeper levels. Both sides agreed to continue giving play to the leading role of high-level exchange， to strengthen the docking of Chinas Belt and Road Initiative with the development strategy of the Czech Republic， and to jointly formulate the outline of the China-Czech cooperation plan. In addition， both sides agreed to expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges in all fields， to develop projects of strengthening mutual understanding between the two peoples， and to deepen cooperation in education， tourism， sports and other fields. Moreover， the two sides will endeavor to push the development of the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership and implement the China-EU 2020 Strategic Agenda for Cooperation， so as to make positive contributions to the four major China-EU partnerships for peace， growth， reform， and civilization.

Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Enriches Countries Along the River

The first Lancang-Mekong Cooperation （LMC） Leaders Meeting was held in Sanya， Hainan Province on March 23， 2016. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang， Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha of Thailand， Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen， Lao Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong， Vice President of Myanmar Sai Mauk Kham， and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh attended the meeting.

Li Keqiang said all countries agreed， on the premise of maintaining regional peace and stability， to deepen political mutual trust and elevate economic cooperation and people-to-people and cultural exchanges in order to forge a new paradigm for sub-regional cooperation and South-South cooperation， and unite the region into a closer community of common destiny. The region can then become an important force to safeguard regional stability and world peace， and make a new contribution to the implementation of the UNs 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Premier Li said that the meeting reached new consensuses on deepening cooperation in water resource management， tackling non-traditional security challenges， enhancing people-to-people and cultural exchanges and other fields. Moreover that it identified the future development direction of the LMC mechanism， demonstrating the political consensus and determination of the six countries and mapping out the blueprint for cooperation in all fields. The mechanism is open and inclusive， and does not contradict other sub-regional cooperation mechanisms. It is conducive to building the China-ASEAN community of common destiny， accelerating local industrialization and economic as well as social development， and bringing more benefits to sub-regional countries and their people.

China， Switzerland Forge Innovative Strategic Partnership

China and Switzerland will establish an innovative strategic partnership to promote common development and prosperity， according to a joint statement issued on April 8， 2016， after the talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and visiting Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann.

During the talks， Xi urged the two sides to enhance strategic consultations， increase mutual understanding and trust， and outline major cooperative areas so as to effectively implement the new partnership. He said the two sides should support the establishment of innovation cooperation platforms and encourage innovative cooperation between businesses， colleges， and research institutes. The president suggested the two countries deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in renewable energy， modern eco-agriculture， energy saving， and environmental protection， as well as medicine.

China is willing to enhance policy coordination with Switzerland on international affairs and hopes that the two sides will jointly commit to the peaceful settlement of international and regional conflicts and to pool wisdom on global economic and financial governance.

Chinese FM Meets Visiting British Foreign Secretary

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with visiting British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond in Beijing on April 9， 2016.

China and Britain are expanding their cooperation in all areas to implement the results of President Xi Jinpings state visit to Britain last October， Wang said. He hoped that both sides could work together to maintain frequent high-level exchanges， strengthen mutual trust， and make sure the “golden era” of China-Britain relationship gets off to a good start.

Hammond said the British government attached great importance to building the “golden era” with China， and that London wanted to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and to strengthen coordination with China in international affairs.

Wang also said that China was willing to work with the international community including Britain to solve the global overcapacity in the steel industry via win-win cooperation. Hammond spoke glowingly of Chinas great efforts in cutting the excess manufacturing capacity in the steel industry during the meeting， stressing that Britain would like to appropriately solve the issue via bilateral and international cooperation.