SM Goh Chok Tong at the Lunch Hosted by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Business China for PRC Vice President Xi Jinping

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Vice President Xi Jinping to Singapore. My previous two meetings with Vice President Xi were both in China - the first time was in 2006 on a boat on the scenic Western Lake (西湖) in Hangzhou when Vice President Xi was the Party Secretary of Zhejiang; and the second time in April this year in Hainan when I attended the board meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia. Today, I am very happy to have the opportunity to reciprocate the warm hospitality that Vice President Xi had extended to me previously.

Vice President Xi last visited Singapore in 1993. That was 17 years ago. Since then the world has changed and our countries have made significant progress. Vice President Xi, too, has been given higher and heavier responsibilities. I would like to extend my heartiest congratulations to you on your recent appointment as Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the Communist Party of China Central Committee (CPCCC). Your appointment is a testament to your steadfast leadership, and reflects the faith that your Party and government have in your abilities. That Singapore is the first country to be visited after your appointment as Vice Chairman of the CMC reflects the importance Vice President Xi attaches to Singapore-China relations. This first visit of yours as Vice President is very timely as it takes place on the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year. Your visit will enhance our bilateral ties and we accord great importance to it.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate China on the successful conclusion of the Shanghai Expo, which attracted a record number of 73 million visitors. I visited the Shanghai Expo in July and was deeply impressed by what I saw. After the Beijing Olympics in 2008, which Vice President Xi successfully spearheaded, the Expo has once again showcased China’s growth and development.

Relations between Singapore and China are longstanding and are grounded on strong foundations. Over the years, our two countries and our peoples have formed strong and enduring bonds of friendship through close and extensive cooperation at various levels and in various fields. We believe that a strong and successful China would benefit us and the region. Singapore wishes China well and will contribute to its growth where we can. This is evident in our commitment to the Suzhou Industrial Park project since 1994, which features a sharing of the Singapore developmental “software”. We had also jointly decided in 2007 to embark on the Tianjin Eco-city, a long-term collaboration to develop an economically vibrant, socially harmonious, environmentally friendly and resource efficient city, which will serve as a model for sustainable development for other cities in China. Singapore’s regard for China is also evident in our human resource training programmes, through which more than 22,000 Chinese officials have benefited. As President of the Communist Party of China’s Central Party School, Vice President Xi is keenly aware of the importance of human resource for a country’s continued development. Singapore is glad to, in our small way, play a role in China’s development.

Today, China and Singapore enjoy a thriving, multi-faceted relationship. Singapore and China signed the China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (CSFTA) in October 2008, China’s first comprehensive bilateral FTA with any Asian country. Our bilateral trade is robust, reaching US$48.7 billion from January to September 2010, an increase of 31% over the same period last year. China is our 3rd largest trading partner while Singapore is China’s 8th largest trading partner. China is also our top investment destination.

Our ties are more than just political and economic. We have deep people-to-people relations too. Just this morning, Vice President Xi and I presided over the groundbreaking of the China Cultural Centre (CCC). The Centre will provide an excellent platform to showcase China’s rich cultural heritage, and will also have a positive impact on Singapore's arts and culture scene. Similarly, Singapore has proposed that we establish a Cultural Exchange Centre on Gulangyu in Xiamen, which would showcase the strong historical and cultural linkages between Fujian and Singapore. Vice President Xi has spent many years in Fujian and would know that it is the province where the majority of Chinese Singaporeans came from. The Fujian Clan Association (Hokkien Huay Kuan) is therefore keen to contribute to the success of this Cultural Exchange Centre.

Singaporeans are also looking forward to the arrival of the two giant pandas on a ten year loan from China. This is a generous offer which has touched the hearts of many Singaporeans and generated much goodwill. I understand that Wildlife Reserves Singapore, which will be housing the pandas when they arrive, has had to extend the deadline for a competition to name the pandas as the response was over-whelming. Such is the excitement that the two pandas have generated in Singapore!

Singapore aims to remain a close partner in China’s development agenda. We recognise that China’s needs have evolved over time and we hope our companies, together with the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) and Business China, will find new areas to grow the relationship. In so doing, they contribute to the development of Singapore-China relations.

Allow me to touch on China’s relationship with Southeast Asia. In the conduct of its relations with ASEAN and Southeast Asia, China's policy has been to secure good relations with major powers while placing emphasis on the immediate periphery (大国是关键，周边是首要). This assurance by China explains why China’s relations with ASEAN is one of the most dynamic amongst ASEAN’s relations with its dialogue partners. The ASEAN-China FTA which only came into effect in January this year, has already brought about a big increase in trade. China has overtaken Japan to become ASEAN’s third largest trading partner, while ASEAN is China’s fourth largest trading partner. Since the ASEAN-China FTA entered into force in January this year, ASEAN-China trade reached US$210 billion in the first nine months this year, marking a hefty increase of 44 percent over the same period last year.

Singapore welcomes China's active engagement of ASEAN and appreciates the constructive role that China has played in the region. Singapore will continue to facilitate deeper links between China and ASEAN. We look forward to the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of China and ASEAN relations next year.Vice President Xi is an old friend of Singapore. I hope that your present visit will bring you new perspectives about our country and pave the way for further cooperation.