Entrepreneurs， Chinese officials and diplomatic envoys from 16 countries attended the International Land-Sea Trade Corridor （ILSTC） Business Conference in southwest Chinas Chongqing on Thursday.

They exchanged ideas on how to better use the corridor， which is part of Chinas Belt and Road Initiative， to promote economic cooperation and broaden trade between Chinese and foreign firms.

Provincial governments of western China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations （ASEAN） intergovernmental organization launched the corridor in 2019. ASEAN has 10 member states： Brunei， Cambodia， Indonesia， Laos， Malaysia， Myanmar， Philippines， Singapore， Thailand and Vietnam.

The corridor includes railway， sea， road and other modes of transport linking 393 ports in 119 countries.

“As a key strategic city in western China and a conjuncture linking the Belt and Road infrastructure and the economic belt along the Yangtze River， Chongqing is the major sponsor， promoter and participant of the International Land-Sea Trade Corridor，” said Zhang Guozhi， vice mayor of Chongqing government at the conference. “Chongqing aims to build up itself as a big corridor， a major hub， an important import and export port and a comprehensive platform by leading digital transformation and pushing smart transformation.”

“We strive to provide a fair market and lawful and international business environment for all the firms in Chongqing.”

Zhang invited foreign friends to visit the beautiful， mountainous city and industrial powerhouse of Southwest China.

Singapore Ambassador to China Lui Tuck Yew told the Peoples Daily that the corridor was the most efficient way to connect the land and maritime Belt and Road projects.

“The outcome of the new project is successful and its development is highly anticipated and potential，” Lui said. “Its key role in linking China with ASEAN countries is magnificent， especially after the transportation capacity of the Yangtze River strains.”

More than 8，000 rail and sea freight trains operated on the new international land-sea trade corridor in 2022， an increase of 45 percent year-on-year， according to official Chinese data.

The logistics involve 17 provincial regions， 60 cities and 113 stations， all 12 provinces of western China and 338 ports in 113 countries and regions around the world.

“The new corridor is enabling Chinas western region to go global as well as producing new development opportunities for countries and regions along the routes including Laos，” said Thongsavanh Phyathep， minister counselor of the Lao Embassy to China in his keynote speech. “The ties between China and Laos are firmly cemented and have obtained fruitful results in many fields of cooperation over the past decades.”

“Chinas investment in Laos reached more than 821 projects from 1989 to 2021， with more than USD16 billion.”

The Laos-China railway was an “outstanding cooperation project，” Phyathep said.

Li Taikang， chief executive officer of Malaysia-China Business Council， said the Malaysia-China Business Council would strive to promote and facilitate trade and investment among the Malaysian and Chinese governments， enterprises and entrepreneurs.

“Malaysia is an important economy and trading partner in ASEAN and one of the key countries for the new corridor，” Li said. “Malaysia and Chongqing have great potential for development in industrial cooperation including high-tech， biomedical information and communication technology.”

Source/Peoples Daily App