Premier Lis Oceania Visit： Boon to Free Trade， Boost to Bilateral Ties

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited Australia and New Zealand from March 22 to 29， 2017. The trip coincided with the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the two countries.

Amid the rising tide of protectionism and anti-globalization， especially amongst some major developed economies， the Chinese premiers visits to Australia and New Zealand– both advocates and long-time beneficiaries of economic globalization – took on new significance.

At the China-Australia Economy and Trade Cooperation Forum， the premier and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull agreed to promote trade facilitation and liberalization. Free trade was also highlighted during the premiers visit to New Zealand， where he hailed economic globalization – represented by the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment – as a major driving force for rapid world economic development.

According to an outcome list for the premiers visit， China and Australia will also enhance synergy between Chinas Belt and Road Initiative and the Vision for Developing North Australia， and will improve cooperation between their innovation strategies. Cooperation in energy， resources， infrastructure， agriculture， animal husbandry， and sci & tech innovation， is also set to expand after the visit.

Jakarta-Bandung Highspeed Rail Contract Signed

On April 4， a consortium of Chinese and Indonesian firms signed an engineering， procurement and construction contract for a high-speed rail project linking Jakarta to Bandung.

The proposed 142-km-long railway is the first of its kind in the whole of Southeast Asia. It is expected to be built in three years and the train will be able to reach a speed of 350 kilometers per hour. The railway will reduce passenger journey times between the two cities from over three hours to 40 minutes.

The signing of the contract was witnessed by Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xie Feng and Indonesias Presidential Chief of Staff Teten Masduki. On behalf of firms from the consortium， the project director， Xiao Songxin， said that the consortium will work hard to implement top quality standards for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway project.

Chinas Top Political Advisor Visits Pakistan and Sri Lanka

The Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference， Yu Zhengsheng， visited Pakistan and Sri Lanka from April 5 to 8， 2017.

During his meeting with Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain， Yu extended his congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the countrys independence， wishing Pakistan even greater progress in its national development. Relations between China and Pakistan are tested by the ever-changing international situation， Yu said. He added that the two sides should keep close high-level contacts， intensify strategic communication and coordination， firmly support each other on issues related to their major national interests， constantly forge all-round cooperation in all fields and jointly construct the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road so as to elevate bilateral ties to new heights.

Hussain said Pakistan firmly supports Chinas safeguarding of its core and major national interests and is willing to work together with China to continuously push forward the bilateral all-weather strategic cooperative partnership.

While meeting with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena， Yu said the two countries should take the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two sides as an opportunity to deepen political trust， align the development strategies of the two countries， jointly construct the Belt and Road， and boost people-to-people exchanges， so as to further enhance the strategic cooperative partnership between the two sides.

Sirisena said Sri Lanka will continue to uphold the One China policy and is looking forward to maintaining frequent high-level exchanges， increasing economic and trade cooperation and strengthening coordination and cooperation with China on international affairs.

China and Norway Ink Cooperation Plans amid Full Normalization of Ties

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang held talks with visiting Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg in Beijing on April 7， 2017.

Li said that China-Norway relations were back on track and deserved to be treasured by both sides. He called on Norway to adhere to the One China policy and work with China in the spirit of mutual respect， approaching each other on an equal footing and respecting each others core interests and major concerns in order to further improve relations. China is willing to restart free trade agreement negotiation and political consultation mechanisms with Norway， establish an inter-governmental energy policy dialogue and increase business exchanges. China and Norway should strengthen cooperation on energy and marine projects to explore third markets and enhance exchanges in various fields， including agriculture， fishery， animal husbandry， science and innovation， and law enforcement.

Solberg said Norway would follow the guidelines laid out in a joint statement on the normalization of bilateral ties， uphold the One China policy， respect Chinas core interests and major concerns， and enhance political trust with China. Norway hopes to resume bilateral free trade agreement negotiations as early as possible and would like to expand cooperation in areas like agriculture， fishery， environmental protection， finance， and investment.

After the meeting， Li and Solberg witnessed the signing of cooperation documents in a range of areas， from science and technology， to sports and health.