The province of Shandong has been ramping up efforts to boost friendly relations and cooperation with regions and cities around the globe during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-20), said local authorities.

According to a news conference held by the Information Office of Shandong Provincial Department Government on Dec 9, Shandong has established 586 sister-city relations and cooperative relations with local governments from 86 countries on five continents.

The Jinan International Sister Cities Commodity Expo is held on Oct 16, 2019. [Photo by Zhang Yong/Chinanews.com]

During the 13th Five-Year Plan period, Shandong received 11 new pairs of sister cities and 40 new pairs of friendly cooperative cities along the Belt and Road.

In addition, 168 cities in the province have reached initial agreements to establish friendly ties with foreign counterparts. 

Over the past five years, Shandong has hosted a number of high-level events to boost international cooperation and exchanges, such as the Qingdao Multinationals Summit, Nishan Forum on World Civilizations, International Summit on Innovation and Development of Youth Entrepreneurs and the Shandong International Friendship Cities Conference for Cooperation and Development.

A series of non-governmental foreign exchange activities were also carried out to deepen friendly relations with key regions and countries.

Moving forward, Shandong will continue to find new ways to boost exchanges and cooperation with foreign countries and regions, deepen economic and trade cooperation, jointly respond to challenges brought about by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and promote regional economic growth.