President Xi to attend 2018 Boao Forum for Asia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping will deliver a keynote speech at April's Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), and new measures to further open up the Chinese economy will be announced, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a media briefing in Beijing, Wang said the BFA had become “an important bridge connecting China with the rest of the world” that is “distinctively Asian, while also visible globally.”

CGTN Photo‍

Wang added that the forum would showcase China’s progress in reform and opening up, and the over 2,000 attendees will “hear a series of new opening-up measures that China will take” and a vision for the future.

President Xi will attend the forum for the third time and deliver the keynote speech at the opening ceremony, as well as meet board members, business leaders and world leaders. Xi will make China’s voice heard and make Chinese positions known, the foreign minister added.

Wang said attendees include Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, Mongolian Prime Minister Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde.

Wang said the world was changing and the forum would seek answers to new developments.

“Today there are profound changes in the international situation and the world economy. On the one hand, open cooperation and transformative innovation have become the trend of the times. At the same time, mankind is also faced with closed door and confrontational policy and resistance to changes.

“How to respond to the question of the times? How to seize opportunities to face up to challenges? How to promote one’s own development while contributing to the development of the world? Countries are finding the right answers and making their choices.”

This year’s annual meeting is held on April 8-11 in south China's Hainan Province under the theme "An Open and Innovative Asia for a World of Greater Prosperity". It will highlight reform, opening up and innovation.

The BFA is a non-governmental and non-profit international organization that hosts high-level forums committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries closer to their development goals.