On March 29, 2014 local time, President Xi Jinping met in Dusseldorf with State Governor Hannelore Kraft of Nordrhein-Westfalen (NRW) of Germany.
Xi Jinping pointed out, NRW is one of the German states with the most population and strongest economic strength, and is important in China-Germany cooperation in trade and investment. NRW has made remarkable achievements in economic transformation and urban sustainable development, and both sides can expand cooperation. The Chinese side welcomes NRW to take full advantage of the unique regional position of the Port of Duisburg and take an active part in the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt. Both sides should also enhance cultural and people-to-people exchanges. China welcomes the Ruhr Museum holding large exhibitions of contemporary Chinese art in 2015. China will open consulate-general in Dusseldorf. We believe that the bilateral cooperation will yield more substantial fruits.
Hannelore Kraft said that NRW has enjoyed close exchange and cooperation with China. At present, more than 800 Chinese enterprises have settled in the state and over 1,000 Nordrhein-Westfalen enterprises have invested in China. NRW is willing to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with China in economy, trade, transport, logistics, culture, humanities and other fields, and continue its positive role in boosting Germany-China relationship.
Wang Huning, Li Zhanshu, Yang Jiechi and others were present at the meeting.