Xi Jinping Holds Telephone Talks with Angela Merkel

Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed over the phone bilateral ties and exchanged views on the Korean Peninsula situation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on September 7.

Xi observed that current China-Germany relations maintain high-level development momentum. The significance of bilateral cooperation has transcended the bilateral boundary， playing an increasingly important role in safeguarding world peace and stability and boosting common development. China is willing to join hands with Germany to continue its cooperation within multilateral frameworks. Angela Merkel noted that exchanges in various fields， such as politics， economy and trade， and people-to-people and cultural engagements between both countries continue to be cemented. Germany hopes to maintain communication and coordination with China on major international and regional issues.

Xi stressed that China adheres to the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula， sticks to the international nuclear non-proliferation principle and firmly safeguards peace and stability in Northeast Asia. Merkel said that Germany advocates peaceful resolution of the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula through political processes and agreed to bring all parties concerned back on the track of dialogue and negotiation.

Li Keqiang and Netanyahu Send Letters of Congratulation to High-tech Expo

The Fifth China Science and Technology City International High-tech Expo was unveiled on September 7 in Mianyang of Southwest Chinas Sichuan Province， with Israel as guest of honor. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both sent letters of congratulation to the expo.

Li said that China highly values sci-tech innovation， pursues an innovationdriven development strategy， and promotes mass entrepreneurship and innovation in order to maintain medium-high economic growth. Stating that Chinas innovation-driven development is open， Li pointed out that China is ready to carry out international cooperation， strengthen the synergy of innovation networks， and contribute to global economic recovery and growth via sci-tech innovation.

As this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Israel， Li said that China is willing to work together with Israel to strengthen cooperation and create new growth engines.

Netanyahu said in his letter that he believes the expo will help advance IsraelChina trade and sci-tech cooperation.endprint

FMs of China， Pakistan， and Afghanistan to Hold Talks within the Year

Foreign ministers of China， Pakistan， and Afghanistan will hold their first trilateral talks within the year， Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi revealed on September 8. He made the remarks during a press conference after a meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif in Beijing.

Wang said Pakistan and Afghanistan are important countries in the region and that he hopes the two nations can work together to safeguard stability there. China attaches great importance to its relations with Pakistan and Afghanistan， and actively helps the two nations narrow differences and enhance mutual trust. It is also exploring opportunities to develop cooperation among the three countries. Through consultations， their foreign ministers will hold their first trilateral talks this year focusing on strategic communication， practical cooperation， and security dialogue.

During the meeting with Asif， Wang stressed that China and Pakistan are allweather strategic cooperative partners. China supports Pakistans efforts to uphold sovereignty， fight terrorism and safeguard national security. For his part， Asif said Pakistan will always firmly support China on issues concerning Chinas core interests， including those related to Taiwan， Tibet， Xinjiang， and the South China Sea.

China-ASEAN Expo Opens in South China

The 14th China-ASEAN Expo began on September 12 in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region， highlighting trade and investment between China， the Association of Southeast Asian Nations （ASEAN）， and other countries along the Belt and Road.

A focus of this years event is the Belt and Road Initiative， with the display area at the expo dedicated to products from countries along the routes such as Kazakhstan， Sri Lanka， Nepal， and Pakistan. Kazakhstan took part in the expo， as the first country along the Silk Road Economic Belt to be invited as a special partner， with a delegation of more than 200 people.

China has expanded its export of electronic products， construction materials， power equipment， construction machines， as well as technology relating to new energy， high-speed trains， and agriculture to ASEAN member states. The blocs food， daily goods， and bulk commodities are favored by Chinese buyers.

The China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit opened on the same day. ASEAN is Chinas third largest trading partner， while China is the associations largest trading partner. China-ASEAN trade reached US $452.2 billion last year and the volume hit US $277 billion from January to July this year.endprint