Li’s visit to Manila to firm up RP-China ties, says senior Chinese envoy

November 10, 2017

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will travel to Manila on Sunday to November 16, not only to attend the series of leaders’ meetings on East Asia cooperation, including the 20th China-ASEAN (10+1) Summit, the 20th ASEAN-China, Japan and the Republic of Korea (10+3) Summit and the 12th East Asia Summit (EAS), but to hold his first official visit to the Philippines.

Li’s visit to the Philippines, also the first after the 19th CPC National Congress, shows that China attaches great importance to China-Philippine relations, reciprocating the pivot made by President Rodrigo Duterte last year to warm up relations with the world’s second largest economy, an official of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong declared that China considers the Philippines as friendly neighbor and important partner.

“Since last year, China-Philippines relations have achieved a turnabout and been constantly developing towards a positive direction. The Philippines is the destination of Premier Li Keqiang's first visit after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which shows that China attaches great importance to China-Philippines relations. This is also the first visit to the Philippines by a Chinese Premier in a decade,” Chen stressed.

The Chinese official expressed confidence that Li’s visit will “vigorously advance bilateral relations in the new era and promote China-Philippines relations to become an important practice of building a new type of international relations as well as a community with a shared future for mankind.”

Li’s visit to Manila marks the first overseas trip of the head of government of China after the successful conclusion of the CPC’s 19th National Congress and it is also an important move at the opening stage of the neighboring diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, the senior Chinese diplomat said.

Li and President Xi Jinping were re-elected to the CPC Central Committee for another five-year term by the CPC Congress last month.

Xi was also reinstalled as general secretary of CPC Central Committee, leading its seven-man Political Bureau Standing Committee.

During his visit, Premier Li Keqiang will hold talks with President Duterte and meet with Senate President Aquilino Pimentel and Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines Pantaleon Alvarez.

The leaders of the two countries will have an in-depth exchange of views on how to deepen China-Philippines relations in the new era, practical cooperation in various fields and regional and international issues of common concern. They will also attend the foundation stone laying ceremony and the launching ceremony of a project funded and built by China.

Li and Duterte also intend to issue a joint statement that reflects the major consensus and achievements of the visit. It is expected to reach a series of important cooperation achievements in such fields as infrastructure, economy, trade, investment, social and people-to-people and cultural engagement.

Chinese Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen said since the turnabout of China-Philippines relations, the two sides have advanced cooperation in such fields as trade, investment, development assistance, major infrastructure and people's livelihood projects, and personnel exchanges, making remarkable achievement.

It is also expected the two sides intend to have extensive and in-depth exchanges of views and sign a number of cooperation documents covering infrastructure, industrial parks, and the implementation of assistance to the Philippines, in order to vigorously promote the comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and push bilateral practical cooperation for new results. DMS