A “Maritime Silk Road” exhibition opened in Songkhla Province, Thailand on March 10.

Chinese Ambassador Lyu Jian, Thai Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Kreangam, Songkhla Governor Dondej Pattanarat and Chinese Consul General in Songkhla Zhou Haicheng attended the opening ceremony. About 1,500 people including representatives from the Overseas Chinese Association in Southern Thailand and members of the Thai public participated in the event.

In his speech at the ceremony,Ambassador Lyu remarked that China’s neighbors are both the primary partners and primary beneficiaries of the “Belt and Road” initiative. “Belt and Road”cooperation empowers Thailand to fully harness its geographical advantage of connecting Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia and use it to accelerate its own development. In the new era, the two countries can carry out mutually beneficial cooperation in traditional industries, mid-to-high end manufacturing, robotics, new energy and other fields at a higher level and with higher quality to tap each other’s consumer markets and foster new consumption trends.

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu described the bright prospects of China-Thailand Maritime Silk Road cooperation.He encouraged all circles in Songkhla to optimize Songkhla’s advantages as the gateway to the Maritime Silk Road through ASEAN. He also pointed out that it is imperative to ensure security and stability in Southern Thailand in order to attract more Chinese investment.

The “Maritime Silk Road” exhibition was jointly organized by the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, the Chinese Consulate General in Songkhla, the General Prem Tinsulanonda Historical Park and the Songkhla Government. The exhibition testifies to the close connection between Songkhla and the ancient Maritime Silk Road as well as the contribution of overseas Chinese to local development,bringing the splendid history of Songkhla to life and fully reflecting the long history of “Jeen Thai Phee Nong Gan.”