Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday met with Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov in the city of Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Noting that Turkmenistan is China's good brother and partner, Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said the two sides should continue the traditional friendship, implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, firmly support each other on issues concerning each other's core interests, explore new ideas in expanding all-around mutually beneficial cooperation, make new breakthroughs in promoting energy cooperation, and take new steps in strengthening people-to-people exchanges.
China is willing to further expand the scale of trade and investment cooperation with Turkmenistan and will encourage more Chinese-funded enterprises to invest in Turkmenistan, Wang said.
Meredov, who is in Chengdu to attend the fifth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers' Meeting, said Turkmenistan adheres to permanent friendship with China and is willing to keep close high-level exchanges with China, give full play to the role of the Turkmenistan-China Cooperation Committee and promote mutually beneficial cooperation on the flagship project of natural gas trade between the two sides.
Chinese foreign minister meets Turkmen deputy prime minister
The second China International Supply Chain Expo concluded on Saturday, with over 210 trade deals and tentative agreements signed, totaling more than 152 billion yuan (about 21.17 billion U.S. dollars), according to the event's organizer, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT).
During the five-day expo, more than 600 exhibitors from nearly 70 countries and regions established cooperative ties with over 37,000 upstream and downstream suppliers, the organizer said.
"This year's expo attracted over 200,000 visitors, both online and offline -- an increase of a third compared to the first edition -- with over 160,000 attending in person. The event featured 620 domestic and foreign enterprises and institutions from 69 countries, regions, and international organizations, with over 1,000 actual exhibitors," said Zhang Shaogang, vice chairman of the CCPIT.
"The CCPIT scheduled over 6,000 matchmaking sessions for exhibitors and visitors, facilitating more than 6,700 cooperation intentions. According to incomplete statistics, the signed cooperation agreements and tentative agreements involve a total amount exceeding 152 billion yuan," said Zhang.
As the world's first national-level exhibition focused on supply chains, the event has garnered significant interest from multinational companies. Nearly one-third of this year's exhibitors were from overseas, up from 26 percent last year. Major global players, including GE HealthCare and SAP, have already confirmed their participation in the third edition of the expo.
Zhang emphasized that the expo serves as a platform for both domestic and international companies to showcase their innovations, engage in meaningful business discussions, and exchange views on strengthening supply chain cooperation.
He noted that the CCPIT is committed to enhancing the event and expanding its reach, aiming to foster greater international consensus on the development of industrial and supply chains.
So far, a total of 68 domestic and foreign enterprises and institutions have signed the intention to participate in the third edition of the expo next year.
Deals worth over 21 bln USD signed at China supply chain expo
