Chen Wenling Meets with Assistant Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development of Canada

Chen Wenling Meets with Assistant Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development of Canada

On April 21, Ms. Chen Wenling, Chief Economist of CCIEE, met with Ms. Susan Gregson, Assistant Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development of Canada. Also at the meeting were Xu Chaoyou, Director General of the Department of External Affairs, Xu Zhanchen, Deputy Director General of the Department of Economic Research of CCIEE.

Susan Gregson noted that Canada attaches great importance to Canada-China economic and trade relations and is willing to make enhancement in this regard. The One Belt & One Road strategy and proposal of AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank) launched by China have received wide responses and Canada would like to learn more about it so as to make a decision.

Ms. Chen introduced the background, meaning and implementation of the One Belt & One Road strategy and answered questions on the operation of AIIB. She pointed out that the One Belt & One Road strategy implies China’s boosted confidence in the international community and is necessary for China’s and world’s economic development. As a responsible nation, China will promote fair and reasonable world order and ensure that all nations can share the opportunities for development by offering its proposals and suggestions.

The One Belt & One Road strategy covers five areas of communication and connectivity, namely, communication on policies, connectivity of roads, facilitation of trade, circulation of currencies, and amity among the people. It aims to achieve better regional infrastructure, better connectivity and high level network of free trade zone. China is the second largest trading partner of Canada and it is beneficial to both the Asian pacific and the world if Canada can take part in the construction of the One Belt & One Road and AIIB.

The two sides agreed to keep communication on issues mentioned above.