Hong Kong to get more support in contribution to building of Belt and Road

HONG KONG, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong, as a participant, contributor, and beneficiary of the Belt and Road Initiative, will get more support in leveraging its unique advantages to participate in and contribute to the building of the initiative, according to the speakers at the seventh Belt and Road Summit that opened here Wednesday.

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng said in his speech via video link at the summit that the central government will fully support Hong Kong in participating in and contributing to the development of the Belt and Road.

Han, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said holding fast to the "one country, two systems" principle, the central government will also support the special administrative region in maintaining its unique status and advantages in the long run.

While strengthening practical cooperation with nations along the Belt and Road, Hong Kong should improve its professional services for Belt and Road development in the fields of the law, shipping, finance and counseling, and step up cultural exchanges with relevant countries, Han said.

In his opening address at the summit, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) John Lee said that the Belt and Road is built on collaboration and covers a wide spectrum of connectivity.

Lee said that as a global city, an international financial and trade center, and the business bridge between the Chinese mainland and the rest of the world, Hong Kong is ready to partner with Belt and Road companies and economies by providing essential project financing and professional services support, innovation and technology, capacity building, cultural awareness, wide-ranging connections and much more.

China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said via video that the ministry will continue to support Hong Kong in leveraging its unique advantages for participation in the joint building of the Belt and Road.

While continuing to help Hong Kong in consolidating and promoting its status as the international trade, financial and shipping center, Wang said that the ministry will also support Hong Kong's early accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) so as to expand regional economic cooperation.

Hao Peng, chief of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said in a video that the commission will fully support the country's centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in working with the HKSAR to foster growth in the joint building of the Belt and Road with high quality.

"We hope to leverage Hong Kong's free and open environment as well as its advantages in finance, law, accounting, design, and supervision to promote more qualified central SOEs to issue bonds, set up regional headquarters and trade platforms in Hong Kong," Hao said, adding that the moves would help the central SOEs enhance capabilities in risk management, corporate governance, and international operation.

Hong Kong is an international financial, shipping and trading center, as well as a key gateway for China, and it can contribute in many ways to the vibrancy of the region now beyond trade connectivity, said Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies Heng Swee Keat during a panel discussion at the summit.

Yazrin Syakhairi, trade commissioner of Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, said Hong Kong is an important trading partner and also the connector.

"We are seeing Hong Kong as the heart or the connector towards connecting all the countries and dots within the initiative," said the commissioner on the sidelines of the event.

Over 6,000 senior government officials and business leaders from more than 80 countries and regions signed up for the seventh Belt and Road Summit to discuss business and collaboration opportunities associated with the Belt and Road Initiative.

The two-day event, themed "Heralding a New Chapter: Collaborate and Innovate" and held in a hybrid format this year, is one of the major events to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR.