DPM Heng Meets China's V-P Han Zheng in Beijing

They take stock of bilateral cooperation, exchange views on socio-economic policies

- Lim Min Zhang

BEIJING - Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat met Chinese Vice-President Han Zheng in Beijing on March 26, as they reflected on the momentum of bilateral projects in the 35th year since diplomatic ties were established.

Apart from the 35th anniversary, DPM Heng noted that 2025 also marks the 10th anniversary of the youngest of three government-to-government projects - the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative, named after the municipality in south-western China.

"We also commemorated Tianjin's (Eco-City) 15 years the year before, and last year, the Suzhou (Industrial Park's) 30th anniversary," DPM Heng said at the start of their meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.

Mr Han remarked that the cooperation between the two countries "can be said to be forward-looking". He said: "We have achieved some tangible results for our bilateral relations and have made due contributions to the development of our region and the world."

Mr Han reported that the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, launched in 2017 to promote the development of China's inland regional economies, has done "very well".

The corridor is used to move goods using a combination of land, air, rail and sea passageways, through Chongqing to Guangxi's ports and onward to Singapore, and vice versa. It comes under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative to link China with the rest of the world.

The two leaders, no strangers to each other, had previously met during DPM Heng's last official visit to China in April 2024.