Top Chinese delegation concludes visit to Kuwait
KUWAIT: A high-level Chinese delegation concluded its visit to Kuwait yesterday after two days discussions with senior state officials on bolstering economic cooperation. The visit came to fulfill a memo signed between the two sides concerning the development of Madinat Al-Harir (Silk City) and other five Kuwaiti Islands. The delegation met with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah, Speaker of the National Assembly Marzouq Al-Ghanem, and First Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
During the visit, the Chinese delegation headed by Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China Ning Jizhe held talks with CEO of the Apparatus for Developing Silk City and Boubyan Island Faisal Al-Medlej, members of Board of Trustees and Secretary General of the Supreme Planning Council Dr Khalid Mahdi. Discussions focused on ways to enhance bilateral economic cooperation between the two countries and activating memorandums of developing Silk City and other five Kuwaiti Islands.
Medlej, accompanied with the Chinese delegation, went on a helicopter tour that was set off from Abdullah Al-Mubarak base to Boubyan, Warba and Failaka Islands, and part of Al-Subbiya to see the location of the Silk City and Mubarak port. The Chinese delegation expressed the keenness to accelerate the implementation of the construction and development of Mubarak port, which will contribute to the creation of a safe crossing and trade zone in the region. The delegation stressed the seriousness of the Chinese companies and institutions in the implementation of the Silk City project which will positively affect the economic and development of Kuwait and neighboring countries. Talks with the Chinese side reviewed the first phase of the Silk City project, which aims to establish a regional trade zone in Mubarak Port, a logistics area for goods, an international airport and railways for transporting goods and people, and an industrial city to embrace small and medium enterprises. Chinese experts’ council members were adopted during the meeting. It included members from China Development Bank, Huawei, Alibaba, Chinese Construction and Communications Companies, Shanghai Ports Corporation and Peking University, as well as other concerned parties in developing the studies and plans required for the implementation of Silk City. The two sides agreed to cooperate with the Chinese Construction and Communications Company to initiate the collection of information, and to develop a work program for the investment, implementation and operation of Mubarak Port for the phase 1, either through long-term leasing or through Public-private partnerships. The 35-member delegation arrived in Kuwait last Saturday on a two-day visit.
The Chinese delegation included officials from state Development and Reform Council, the Chinese Civil Planning Institute, the State Development Bank, State Transport Company of China and government bodies involved in infrastructure and mega projects. Kuwaiti Ambassador to China Sameh Hayat, Chinese Ambassador to the country Li Minggang, and members of the Chinese Embassy were seen off by the Chinese top official and his accompanying delegation. — KUNA