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The "16 plus one" cooperation mechanism between China and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) was taken a step further with the inauguration of an e-commerce logistics hub in Bulgaria for agricultural and other products on Friday.
This hub, the first of its kind in the 16 CEE nations under the mechanism, will promote commodity exchanges by providing a place to exhibit and sell products along with a full package of transport and other logistics services.
The project at Bulgaria's Trakia Economic Zone near Plovdiv was implemented by the Association for the Promotion of Agricultural Cooperation between China and the CEE countries with the support of Bulgaria's Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry.
Lozana Vassileva, the Bulgarian deputy minister of agriculture, told the inauguration ceremony that the logistics hub would become a modern bridge for more successful and reliable cooperation between CEE countries and China.
"We hope that it will be a good example for the other CEE countries in expanding the cooperation with the Chinese economy," Vassileva said.
The first 16+1 e-commerce logistics hub and pavilion for agricultural and other products was inaugurated at Bulgaria's Trakia Economic Zone near Plovdiv on December 1, 2017.
Chinese ambassador to Bulgaria Zhang Haizhou said the hub provided another platform for multilateral agricultural cooperation.
Vasil Gelev, executive director of the association, emphasized that the facility was not only for Bulgaria, but also for all CEE countries "and of course, for our most important strategic partner – China."
"We welcome all companies interested in investing and trading to join our project," added Gelev, whose association was established at intergovernmental level in Sofia in June 2015 to coordinate the activities of ministries on the one hand, and the businesses on the other.
China, CEE nations enhancing tourism cooperation
China and the CEE countries vowed on Friday to enhance cooperation in tourism. Speaking at the third tourism ministerial summit, vice chairman of the China National Tourism Administration Du Jiang stressed that the Chinese government attaches great importance to tourism development.
China and Central and Eastern European countries vowed to enhance cooperation in tourism.
"We are pleased to see that in recent years, tourism cooperation between China and CEE countries has made notable advances," he said.
According to Du, between 2011 and 2016, two-way tourist exchange between China and CEE countries increased from 507,000 to 1,249,000, up by 146.3 percent.
Mirko Sarovic, Bosnia and Herzegovina's
minister of foreign trade and economic relations, said at the meeting that the number of Chinese tourists to his country had increased five times in the past five years.
In a joint statement adopted by the meeting, China and the CEE nations agreed to support the strengthening of the existing arrangements as well as the creation of new platforms for the exchange of tourism offers and information.
They also agreed to initiate the establishment of thematic tourism routes linking the tourism offers of China and CEE countries in the field of world cultural heritage.
(CGTN)
