Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali arrived in Beijing at 08:12 on Wednesday to attend the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which will be held in the Chinese capital from Wednesday to Friday.
Ethiopia is a landlocked country in northeast Africa. The plateau accounts for two-thirds of the country's area, with an average elevation of nearly 3,000 meters, known as the "roof of Africa".
China and Ethiopia enjoy traditional friendship. In October 2023, China and Ethiopia upgraded their relationship to an all-weather strategic partnership. Ethiopia is a member of the FOCAC and a new member of BRICS. China and Ethiopia have jointly built flagship projects under the Belt and Road Initiative, including the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway and the Addis Ababa Light Rail Transit.
Economic and technological cooperation between China and Ethiopia began in 1971, with agreements on trade and economic and technological cooperation between the two countries signed. So far, China has completed complete sets of projects for Ethiopia, including roads, veterinary stations, power stations and water supply projects.
China is Ethiopia's largest trading partner, the largest source of investment, and the largest contractor for engineering projects. In 2023, the bilateral trade volume reached 3.03 billion U.S. dollars, up 14.7 percent year on year. Ethiopia is China's largest source of sesame imports.
In 1988, the two countries signed an agreement on cultural cooperation. It has seen mutual frequent visits by cultural delegations and performing troupes. From 2022 to 2023, a total of 3,732 Ethiopian students studied in China. There are currently two Confucius Institutes in Ethiopia.
Since 1974, China has sent 26 medical teams to Ethiopia, including two relief teams. At present, there are 16 Chinese medical team members in Ethiopia.
Ethiopia is the first African country where young Chinese have gone to serve as volunteers and the destination country for outbound tourism groups of Chinese citizens. Ethiopian Airlines operates flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hong Kong and other places, making it the African airline with the most flights to China.
Ethiopian prime minister arrives in Beijing for 2024 FOCAC Summit
Sunday marked the 16th anniversary of the opening of the "mini three links" across the Taiwan Strait, comprising air, sea, and postal services, which have significantly enhanced cross-Strait connectivity.
The Wutong Ferry Terminal in Xiamen City of east China's Fujian Province is a bustling hub offering a round-trip service between Xiamen and Kinmen of China's Taiwan region.
Initially launched in 2001, the route became part of the broader "mini three links" in 2008 and has since transported over 20 million passengers.
Its service was suspended for almost three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was resumed in January last year. Since resumption, the round-trip operations have increased from two per day to 20, serving more than 1.15 million passenger trips in total.
"For those regular commuters traveling back and forth frequently, their biggest need is to clear customs quickly as soon as they arrive. It has to be fast and efficient. Therefore, we have established the nation's largest quick customs clearance information collection point for compatriots in Taiwan at the ferry terminal," said Chen Jinlai, deputy chief of the Gaoqi Border Inspection Station of Xiamen Entry and Exit Border Inspection Station.
"The ferry is quite comfortable within the mini three links," said a passenger from Kinmen.
"I've been taking the ferry at the Wutong terminal for over a decade," said another passenger from Kaohsiung in Taiwan.
Many travelers from the mainland, especially those from Fujian to the islands of Kinmen and Matsu, can be seen after the resumption of travel.
"We will travel there (Kinmen) for two days. The customs clearance is basically self-service. There's the fast channel for senior people on wheelchairs. It's very convenient," said a passenger from the mainland.
"I traveled [to Kinmen] before. But this is my first time riding a bicycle there," said another passenger from the mainland.
In Xiamen, the cross-Strait postal service also plays an important role in communication across the Strait. At a mail processing center with the China Post, staff have been busy sorting packages sent between the mainland and the Taiwan region.
"Since our mail exchange center started operation in 2008, we have processed thousands of mails and parcels on a daily basis. On July 30 this year, we resumed the two-way mail route between Xiamen and Kinmen," said Cai Chunmei, head of the Xiamen-Taiwan Mail Exchange Center.
These services are an epitome of the "mini three links" across the Taiwan Strait. Since 2008 or even much before that, they have facilitated the flow of people, goods, and capital, playing a substantial role in enhancing common interests, especially for the people of the Taiwan region.
Cross-Strait direct links foster closer ties with growing connectivity
