Chinese vice premier meets foreign leaders attending Boao forum

Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang met with foreign leaders who are in China for the ongoing Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2025 in Boao, south China's Hainan Province, on Wednesday.

Ding, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, had a meeting with Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone. Ding said China is willing to work with Laos in supporting each other's core interests and advancing practical cooperation across various fields. For his part, Sonexay reaffirmed that Laos would make continuous efforts to make new progress in developing Laos-China community with a shared future.

In a meeting with Kazakhstan's First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar, Ding called for joint efforts to translate the outcomes of the recent 12th Meeting of the China-Kazakhstan Cooperation Committee into real actions. Sklyar said Kazakhstan is ready to work closely with China to elevate bilateral ties to a new high. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of China-Indonesia diplomatic relations. While speaking with Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Regional Infrastructure and Development Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Ding said the two sides should enhance strategic synergy and strive for new breakthroughs in practical cooperation. Agus said Indonesia is committed to deepening and expanding cooperation with China in various sectors and further advancing the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

When meeting with Portugal's Minister of State and Foreign Affairs Paulo Rangel, Ding said China is dedicated to mutual respect and trust with Portugal and is ready to expand mutually beneficial cooperation and deepen opening up and exchanges between the two sides.

Rangel said Portugal thinks highly of Macao's prosperity and steady development since it returned to China, pledging efforts to further deepen practical cooperation with China.

Founded in 2001, the BFA is a non-governmental and non-profit international organization committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries closer to their development goals. Running from Tuesday to Friday, this year's conference is themed "Asia in the Changing World: Towards a Shared Future."

Chinese vice premier meets foreign leaders attending Boao forum

Chinese vice premier meets foreign leaders attending Boao forum

Myanmar's government is coordinating all departments to work together to save lives during the critical 72-hour rescue window, amid what an official on Sunday described as a "very chaotic condition" following the devastating earthquake.

The rescue work after a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck the southeast Asian country at around 12:50 local time (06:20 GMT) on Friday currently faces great difficulties, according to Min Min Thein, director general of the Department of Rehabilitation under the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement.

"Because of the strong nature of the earthquake, some of the basement floors collapsed down and some people are trapped in these areas. So we are identifying these people -- where are the missing people, where are the trapped people. The fire safety department, and also the military personnel, and also other representatives from different ministries, are working together to save the lives of the victims as much as we can. At the time, we also have some kind of damage in some of the hospitals, so it is a very chaotic condition at this moment. However, we are trying to manage as much as we can, and also these fire safety departments are working 24 hours these days to catch up the 'golden hours' -- 72 hours. And also, we are also arranging for the emergency shelters and also food and water assistance," he said.

Min Min Thein expressed the government's gratitude to the rescue teams rushing to the quake-hit areas from various countries, emphasizing that China's immediate response in dispatching experienced rescue teams demonstrates the friendship between China and Myanmar.

"So the first international [team] arriving is a Chinese rescue team, and then later followed by other teams. So such kind of experienced team, and also experienced with equipment, are coming together, expressing friendship between China and Myanmar," said the official.

Myanmar making every effort to save lives in "very chaotic condition" after deadly earthquake: official