Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday called for greater solidarity and cooperation between China and the five Mekong River countries in pursuit of common development.
Li attended the eighth Greater Mekong Subregion Summit together with the heads of government of the five Mekong River countries, namely, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, and president of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Kunming, the provincial capital of Yunnan in southwest China.
In his speech at the summit, Li said that the world has entered a new period of turbulence and change, and China and the five Mekong River countries should all the more strengthen solidarity and cooperation and work together in pursuit of common development.
Li put forth a four-point proposal for deepening regional cooperation, which includes adhering to opening and cooperation and building more efficient and vibrant mega markets in the region, stepping up innovation to foster new growth drivers for the regional economy, deepening connectivity through infrastructure construction to accelerate regional economic integration, and maintaining close communication and coordination and practicing true multilateralism.
Other leaders at the meeting expressed their willingness to enhance communication and docking of development strategies among countries in the region and expand practical cooperation in various fields.
The summit adopted a leaders' declaration and a development strategy blueprint, among other documents.
Chinese premier calls for greater cooperation with Mekong River countries
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will extend the two-week ceasefire with Iran that was set to expire on Wednesday night (midnight GMT Tuesday).
"Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The U.S. president said he will "extend the ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other."
The U.S. military will continue the blockade against Iran and "remain ready and able," according to Trump.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X Tuesday that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports is "an act of war and thus a violation of the ceasefire" and attacking Iranian merchant ships and detaining their crew members were even more serious violations.
"Iran knows how to neutralize restrictions, how to defend its interests, and how to resist bullying," Araghchi wrote in his post.
Mehdi Mohammadi, an advisor to Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, also said the U.S. blockade must be met with a military response, dismissing Trump's ceasefire extension announcement as "meaningless".
"Extending the ceasefire by Trump has no meaning. The losing side cannot dictate terms. Continuing the blockade is no different from bombing and must be met with a military response. Moreover, any extension of the ceasefire by Trump is certainly a way to buy time for a surprise attack. Now is the time for Iran to take the initiative," Mohammadi posted on X.
Trump extends ceasefire; Iran vows military response to naval blockade
