A congress to boost cooperation between local governments across East and Southeast Asia is taking place in Linyi, eastern China's Shandong Province, on Thursday. The event brings representatives together from China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and Indonesia. Yang Jinghao reports. 

Under the theme "Win-win Cooperation in East Asia", the meeting in Linyi gathers local government officials from across East Asia as they emphasize cooperation and exchanges in the face of challenges.

YIN DAQI, Counselor, Department of Asian Affairs, Chinese Foreign Ministry "Although the development of bilateral and multilateral relations between East Asian countries has sometimes experienced twists and turns, and encountered difficulties and challenges in recent years, friendly exchanges between local governments in East Asia have never been interrupted."

Topping the agenda is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or R-CEP, widely expected to promote further connectivity in the region. The economic pact took effect in January 2022, covering most of East and Southeast Asian countries.

ZHANG JIAN, Director, Foreign Affairs Office, Linyi Municipal Government "Last year, Linyi's import and export trade volume with RCEP member countries reached about 87-point-9-billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 36-point-4-percent. This shows a close economic partnership between the two sides. Linyi is also the home of celebrated calligrapher Wang Xizhi and strategist Zhu Geliang. We'll take advantage of our profound historic resources to promote cultural exchanges."

Participants shared experiences and insights on achieving high-quality, green, low-carbon development. The event also witnessed the signing of more than 30 business cooperation contracts, a further boost to economic ties.

NOMURA TATSUHO, Foreign Affairs Department, Nara Prefectural Government, Japan "Tourism is the main industry of Nara prefecture. We've welcomed a lot of Chinese tourists both before and after the pandemic, and we feel grateful for that. Nara and China's Shaanxi Province are sister cities, and we hope to deepen exchanges with more places by forming such friendly relations."

YANG JINGHAO, Linyi, Shandong Province "The gathering also adopted what's known as the 'Linyi Initiative', which includes resource sharing, low-carbon development, high-tech innovation, cultural diversity and reform and opening up. Participants at the event hope the initiative will play a role in strengthening pragmatic cooperation between regional governments in Asian countries. YJH, CGTN, Linyi, Shandong Province."