China and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the
Gulf (GCC) agreed to further exchanges and begin talks on forging a
free trade area, according to a press communiqué issued by China
and GCC in Beijing Wednesday.
A GCC delegation of the finance ministers of the six member
nations and the organization's secretary-general visited China
between July 4 and 7 at the invitation of the Chinese government.
During their stay in China, delegation members exchanged views with
Chinese senior officials on expanding cooperation fields and
promoting bilateral ties.
During the visit, the two sides signed a framework agreement on
cooperation in economy, trade, investment and technology, in which
the two sides consented on establishing a joint committee to
oversee the implementation of the agreement and other pacts or
protocols signed on the basis of the agreement, according to the
communiqué.
To encourage and facilitate trade of commodities and services,
the two sides agreed to launch talks on the establishment of a
China-GCC free trade area, and the first round of talks will be
held in China as early as possible.
According to the communiqué, both sides expressed satisfaction
over the results of the visit and agreed to continue such exchange
in the future.
Founded in 1981, the GCC involves Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
According to China's statistics, trade between China and GCC
surged from US$1.5 billion in 1991 to US$16.9 billion last year,
and GCC has become China's eighth largest trade partner, eighth
largest export destination and ninth largest import source
worldwide.
(Xinhua News Agency July 8, 2004)
