Shanghai Daily

Chinese president, leaders check out Country Pavilion

- (Xinhua)

CHINESE President Xi Jinping and foreign leaders who are attending the first China Internatio­nal Import Expo toured around the Country Pavilion for Trade and Investment, which showcases the developmen­t achievemen­ts and features products from more than 80 countries.

They visited the booths of Hungary, Egypt, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Kenya, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Laos, Georgia, Vietnam, Pakistan and Russia at the Country Pavilion.

During the visit, Czech President Milos Zeman improvised a melody on a Czech-made piano and invited Xi to taste beer from his country. Flowers from Kenya, coffee from El Salvador and fruits from the Dominican Republic also attracted the leaders.

At the Russian booth, Xi was accompanie­d by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and was introduced to the achievemen­ts of both sides’ cooperatio­n in nuclear power, natural gas and plane manufactur­ing, as well as local exchanges.

Xi noted the exhibits from all the countries are varied and distinctiv­e. He expected all sides to take the advantage of CIIE to discover market opportunit­ies, enhance cooperatio­n and improve their competitiv­eness, so as to achieve mutual benefits from exporting quality products that can enrich the Chinese market and satisfy the increasing­ly diversifie­d demands from Chinese consumers.

The group of leaders also visited the Chinese booth that is organized around the country’s vision of innovative, coordinate­d, green, and open developmen­t that is for everyone, which showcased the country’s achievemen­ts since the reform and opening-up and new opportunit­ies brought by the Belt and Road Initiative.

Laotian and Vietnamese prime ministers had a simulated ride on the Fuxing, China’s latest generation of high-speed trains, which run at 350 kilometers per hour. China’s independen­tly developed C919 large passenger aircraft and a model of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge that opened recently also interested the visitors.

The leaders said CIIE shows China’s open mind for inclusiven­ess and responsibi­lity as a major country. They spoke highly of and warmly welcomed Xi’s keynote speech at the opening ceremony.

They noted China is an important and promising market, and they will tap the potential for cooperatio­n and promote bilateral trade growth and the developmen­t of free trade globally.

With an area of 30,000 square meters, the Country Pavilion for Trade and Investment is an important part of CIIE.

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