Chinese Vice Premier Liu Guozhong and visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez respectively addressed the opening ceremony of the ninth meeting of the China-Spain Forum in Beijing on Monday, both calling for strengthened bilateral cooperation.
Liu, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries more than half a century ago, China-Spain relations have been developing continuously.
Especially in the new era, under the strategic guidance of the heads of state of the two countries, political mutual trust between China and Spain has been increasingly consolidated, he added.
Liu noted that standing at the new starting point of the next 50 years of China-Spain relations, the two sides should give full play to the role of mechanism platforms such as the China-Spain Forum.
Liu said the two sides should provide fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for each other's enterprises, strengthen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, green energy and environmental protection.
Spain is welcome to participate deeply in China's opening-up process, Liu said.
Sanchez said the international situation is undergoing complex and unpredictable changes, but there are also opportunities. Spain and China should be full of confidence, strengthen cooperation and jointly deal with global challenges, he said.
Chinese vice premier, Spanish prime minister address ninth meeting of China-Spain Forum
Chinese vice premier, Spanish prime minister address ninth meeting of China-Spain Forum
Germany's decision to tighten border controls since Monday has caused serious traffic congestion and delays for vehicles heading from the Polish side to Germany, which also triggered growing complaints from the public.
The new measures affected Germany's borders with France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Poland. This temporary control measure will last six months and may be extended after its expiration.
In the Polish border city of Slubice, vehicles heading from the Polish side to Germany began to line up in long queues and move slowly on Monday local time, while vehicles heading from the German side to Poland are unimpeded.
The German government said that the implementation of this control measure is to limit illegal immigration, deal with potential terrorist threats and cross-border crimes, and protect its national security. However, this measure has caused great inconvenience to the lives of people on the Polish side. Many Polish residents need to go to Germany to work and study every day, and the serious traffic congestion has made life more difficult for them.
"Because there are so many illegal immigrants trying to enter Germany, initially Germany implemented controls at the main border entrances, but now the control measures have been extended to the whole country. Such restrictions are necessary to a certain extent, but they have caused a lot of freight trucks to be congested at the highway ports. Now there is congestion at the port bridge in our city, and people have begun to complain," said Daniel Malecki, a resident in Slubice.
Border control policy in Germany triggers traffic congestion, rising complaints
