Xi'an seeks cooperation opportunities with Malaysia

Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province signed a memorandum of cooperation with Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia on Sept 23 for close cooperation and resource sharing in the fields of culture, tourism, and education.

Sabah is one of the 13 states of Malaysia, and spans an area of 74,500 square kilometers. It is surrounded by the sea on three sides. As the capital of Sabah, Kota Kinabalu is a popular city for tourism and investment.

During the signing ceremony, Li Mingyuan, mayor of Xi'an, gave a brief introduction on the city’s economic and social development in recent years. As an ancient city that is also characterized by its innovation and vitality, Xi'an is dedicated to building itself into a national central city and an international metropolis.

He expressed hope that the two sides will strengthen exchanges, deepen pragmatic cooperation, and share new opportunities for the development of the Belt and Road.

Datuk Christina Liew, Sabah deputy chief minister and minister of tourism, culture and environment of Sabah, said that with the continued development of construction of the Belt and Road, many countries and regions in the world, including Malaysia, are also welcoming new development opportunities.

Kota Kinabalu is expected to learn from Xi'an's advanced experiences in the development of culture and tourism to achieve mutually beneficial cooperation.