The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) Sign the Cooperation Document on the Belt and Road Initiative

On April 26, 2019, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana signed in Beijing a memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China and the United Nations Economic and Social commission for Asia and the Pacific on the Belt and Road Initiative for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The memorandum of understanding stressed that the Belt and Road Initiative is in line with the trend of regional and international cooperation and follows the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, playing an important role in promoting the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and strengthening connectivity among Asia-Pacific countries and regions. China and the UN ESCAP will carry out cooperation in such fields as infrastructure, transportation, trade, energy and innovation, fully tap into the potential of the Belt and Road Initiative for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to promote mutual benefit and win-win results among countries in the region.

The UN ESCAP, a UN agency responsible for economic and social development in the Asia-Pacific region, has long been committed to promoting regional connectivity and regional economic integration. The letter of intent on cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative signed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UN ESCAP in 2016 is the first cooperation document on the Belt and Road Initiative signed by the Chinese side and an international organization. The memorandum of understanding signed this time further deepens the political consensus of the two sides to jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative and will provide guidance for the cooperation in the future.