China willing to further pragmatic cooperation with CEECs: vice premier

Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, delivers a keynote speech at the China-Central and Eastern European Countries Cooperation Forum in Ningbo, east China’s Zhejiang Province, June 9, 2019.

China is willing to work with the Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs) to broaden and deepen pragmatic cooperation, Vice Premier Hu Chunhua said Sunday.

Hu made the remarks in a keynote speech delivered at the China-CEEC Cooperation Forum held in Ningbo, east China’s Zhejiang Province.

Hailing the fruitful outcomes of China-CEECs cooperation, He said that China stands ready to work together with CEECs to further align their development strategies and plans, expand trade ties, deepen investment and capacity cooperation and speed up infrastructure connectivity, to continuously expand and deepen pragmatic cooperation.

He stressed that China will unswervingly expand opening-up and will open its door wider to the outside world.

China will continue to shorten its negative list for market access, push forward the all-round opening up in sectors including modern services, manufacturing, and agriculture, and expedite the formulation of supporting regulations of the Foreign Investment Law, Hu said.

China will step up international cooperation for intellectual property rights protection, increase imports of quality goods and services, and implement high-level trade and investment liberalization and facilitation policies, he added.

Enterprises from CEECs are welcome to work together with Chinese enterprises to seize opportunities and tap potential, to lift bilateral cooperation to a higher level, Hu said.

Prior to attending the forum, Hu visited the first China-CEEC Expo & International Consumer Goods Fair and met with guests from some CEECs.