Wang Yi Meets with Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan

On February 4, 2022, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who accompanied Singaporean President Halimah Yacob to come to China for the opening ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.

Wang Yi said, today, the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 will open as scheduled. It is a grand event for Asia and the world, which will bring confidence and joy to people of all countries in the face of the pandemic. Official representatives from 66 countries, regions and international organizations will attend the opening ceremony, demonstrating their support for the Olympic spirit and China's hosting of the Games. China welcomes President Halimah's special trip to China to participate in the grand event with us. We are confident that the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 will be a great success and a highlight in the Olympic history of mankind.

Vivian spoke positively of China's development achievements, saying that the biggest change in the world in the past century is China's rapid development and progress, and he is confident that China will achieve the second centenary goal as scheduled. He said, in 2008, I attended the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. It is my great honor to come to China again and witness that Beijing is to become the city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. Singapore and China enjoy a special and close relationship, with frequent economic and trade exchanges, active exchanges in various fields and fruitful results in practical cooperation. The two sides have supported each other during the pandemic, vividly reflecting "a friend in need is a friend indeed". Singapore is willing to work with China to further deepen the all-round cooperative partnership progressing with the times. Singapore highly appreciates and actively participates in Belt and Road cooperation, and is ready to work with China to speed up the building of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and strengthen cooperation in digital economy, green development, connectivity, infrastructure and third-party markets. Singapore welcomes China's proposal to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement. Singapore hopes to resume high-level visits between the two countries as soon as possible after the pandemic is brought under control.

Wang Yi said that the all-round cooperation between China and Singapore progressing with the times fully reflects that the bilateral relationship is unique and forward-looking. The two countries have always understood, trusted and supported each other. China and Singapore have long maintained sound and stable relations and continuously deepened practical cooperation, which is conducive to the respective development and revitalization of the two countries and plays an exemplary and leading role in state-to-state relations. China appreciates Singapore's consistent understanding and support for China's reform and opening-up and its continuous expansion and exploration of new areas and space for cooperation with China. China is willing to work with Singapore to continuously inject new impetus into China-Singapore relations and achieve common development and prosperity at a higher level.

The two sides exchanged views on the South China Sea issue. Wang Yi stressed that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). Facts have proved that the ideas and measures to fully and effectively implement the DOC and accelerate the consultation on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC) are completely correct. We should overcome the difficulties of the pandemic and resume the offline consultation on the COC as soon as possible. China is ready to work with ASEAN countries to enhance mutual trust, remove disruption and jointly commit ourselves to upholding peace and stability in the South China Sea.

The two sides also exchanged views on the situation in the Asia-Pacific region and China-U.S. relations. On the Myanmar issue, Wang Yi said, China always supports ASEAN centrality and supports ASEAN in maintaining solidarity and properly handling the issues relating to Myanmar in the ASEAN way.