Premier Li Keqiang and Indian Prime Minister Modi Attend Regional Forum

he First Forum of Leaders of the Regions of China and India， co-sponsored by the CPAFFC and the China International Friendship Cities Association （CIFCA）， was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 15. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi gave addresses.

Premier Li expressed his congratulations on the launching of the Forum. China had made tremendous achievements since reform and opening up， based in large part on fully mobilizing the initiatives of both central and local governments. The Forum had a good theme， namely， “Smart City， Smart Living”.

As two developing countries with the largest populations， both China and India had great growth potential. Developing exchanges and cooperation between their local governments to fully tap the wisdom of the two peoples would enable them to realize smart living. The launching of the Forum was of historic significance and a good start to practical cooperation between the local governments that would activate the great vitality and potential of the two countries.

Prime Minister Modi said， the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of State/Provincial Leaders’ Forum was the first agreement on cooperation at local government level the Indian Government had signed with another country， and was a significant event in bilateral relations. The Indian side attached great importance to it and was willing to discuss new opportunities for exchanges and cooperation between localities to elevate bilateral relations to new heights.

About 180 representatives from two municipalities directly under the Central Government， four provinces and four cities of China， and two states and four cities of India attended the Forum. They had in-depth discussions on sustainable urbanization and the role of localities in promoting a closer China-India partnership. During the Forum， the CPAFFC and the Ministry of External Affairs of India signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of Provincial/State Leaders’ Forum， thus institutionalizing the exchanges.

Sichuan Province with Karnataka State， Chongqing with Chennai， Qing-

dao with Hyderabad， and Dunhuang with Aurangabad signed agreements on the establishment of friendship-city/province （state） relations， becoming the third batch of localities to sign such agreements between the two countries.

CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin addressed the opening ceremony， saying the steady development of China-India friendship-city relations and growing practical cooperation between various localities meant the Forum was being held at the perfect time. It would elevate the exchanges and cooperation between localities of the two countries to new heights. The CPAFFC would， as always， strengthen communication with Indian local governments to build a platform for expanding local exchanges and make joint efforts to promote common development through resource-sharing and complementing each other’s advantages.

Anandiben Patel， Chief Minister of Gujarat State， said the launching of the Forum provided a rare historical opportunity for India-China exchanges at the local level. Indian states were paying high attention to developing friendly relations with China and were willing to strengthen contacts and boost practical cooperation in all areas.

Among other attendees who spoke at the Forum were Beijing Mayor Wang Anshun， Chongqing Mayor Huang Qifan， Shandong Governor Guo Shu-qing， Guangdong Governor Zhu Xiaodan， Sichuan Executive Vice Governor Wang Ning， Gansu Vice Governor Xia Hongmin， Qingdao Mayor Zhang Xinqi， Chengdu Vice Mayor Liu Shoucheng， Kunming Vice Mayor Yang Bi， Dunhuang Mayor Jia Taibin， Chief Minister of Gujarat State Anandiben Patel， Chief Minister of Maharashtra State Devendra Fadnavis， Mayor of Ahmedabad Meenaxiben Patel， Mayor of Chennai Saidai Sa. Duraisamy， Acting Mayor of New Delhi Dharam Pal， and Municipal Administrator of Hyderabad Mr. Gopal.