From November 11 to November 15, 2025, at the invitation of the Singapore China Association and the China Maldivian Cultural Association, President Yang Wanming of Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), led a delegation to Singapore and the Maldives.
During his visit to Singapore, President Yang Wanming met with Sim Ann, Singapore People's Action Party (PAP) Central Executive Committee Member and Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Home Affairs; Xie Yongde, President of the Singapore China Association; Phua Kok Khoo, President of the Singapore China Friendship Association; Gao Quanqing, President of Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCCI); Goh Toh Sim, President of Singapore-China Business Association; Liu Thai Ker, Chairman of National Arts Council (NAC); CHIN Siat Yoon, Singapore's former ambassador to China. He also attended the 35th Anniversary Celebration Dinner of China-Singapore Diplomatic Relations held by the Singapore China Association, visited the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore (NUS), and held discussions with relevant officials. During the visit, President Yang engaged extensively with Singapore's political, business, and cultural circles, actively promoting the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee. He had in-depth exchanges on China-Singapore relations, people-to-people friendship, subnational economic and trade cooperation, youth and cultural exchanges, and other areas. Cao Zhongming, the Chinese Ambassador to Singapore, attended the major events.
President Yang Wanming expressed that China and Singapore are friendly neighbors and important partners. Over the past 35 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the bilateral relations have maintained a good development momentum, with political mutual trust deepening, fruitful practical cooperation, and increasingly close cultural exchanges. The bilateral relationship has set a model for mutual learning, mutual benefit, and win-win cooperation. This June, President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong Shyun Tsai in Beijing, pointing the way for the further development of the comprehensive, high-quality, and forward-looking partnership between the two countries. In October, Prime Minister Li Qiang made a successful official visit to Singapore, marking the year with mutual visits between the two prime ministers. Under the strategic guidance of the leaders of two countries, China and Singapore's high-quality cooperation in jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative continues to deepen, with model projects such as the Suzhou Industrial Park, Tianjin Eco-city, and China-Singapore (Chongqing) Strategic Connectivity progressing further. Cooperation in emerging fields such as digital economy, green development, and artificial intelligence is also advancing steadily, achieving significant development.
President Yang Wanming said that both China and Singapore are currently in important stages of development. Not long ago, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee approved proposals for formulating the "15th Five-Year Plan", outlining a blueprint for China's development for the next five years and beyond. Singapore's new government is also at an important stage of governance. The development of two countries presents important opportunities for one another. As long as both sides adhere to mutual respect, mutual trust, and open cooperation, they can share prosperity and create a better future through mutual achievements. The CPAFFC is willing to closely cooperate with all sectors in Singapore, following the strategic guidance of the two countries' leaders, leveraging the unique role of people-to-people diplomacy, and better building bridges for people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship. Through these efforts, The CPAFFC hopes to propel the further development of a comprehensive, high-quality, and forward-looking partnership between China and Singapore.
The Singapore side warmly congratulated the successful convening of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and expressed full confidence in China's future development. They unanimously stated that over the past 35 years, the relationship between Singapore and China has been characterized by close ties at all levels and in all areas, with traditional friendship continuously deepening, mutually beneficial cooperation yielding fruitful results and strong momentum in the development of bilateral relations. The Singapore side expressed willingness to leverage its unique geographical advantages, strengthen development alignment with China, continue advancing signature projects and connectivity cooperation, and work together to promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and the world.
Sim Ann expressed that the the government of Singapore places great importance on and has long supported the wide-ranging cultural exchanges between the two countries' friendly organizations. She hopes that both sides will focus on people-to-people friendship and further promote mutual learning and practical cooperation in areas such as subnational governance, urban planning, and talent development, helping to elevate the bilateral relations to a new level. Xie Yongde stated that the Singapore China Association will continue to focus on areas such as economic and trade cooperation, culture, and youth exchanges, building more friendly activities that bring people closer together and strengthen the public foundation for Singapore-China friendship. Phua Kok Khoo expressed that the Singapore China Friendship Association will continue to unite friendly forces and focus on education cooperation and academic exchanges, nurturing the next generation of Singapore-China friendly leaders. Gao Quanqing expressed the desire to strengthen development alignment with Chinese localities, promote two-way trade and investment, and achieve mutual benefit and common development.
During his visit to the Maldives, President Yang Wanming met with Mohamed Waheed, special representative of President Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives and former President; Adam Shareef Umar, Minister of Cities, Local Government and Public Works; Amin Javed Faizal, Additional Secretary to Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ibrahim Hassan, former Minister of Higher Education; Hamdhoon Hameed, Senior Advisor to the Minister of Finance. He also attended the 9th China-South Asia Friendship Organizations Forum and met with the heads of South Asian friendship organizations in attendance. They held in-depth discussions on further deepening China-Maldives and China-South Asia traditional friendship, strengthening subnational, cultural, and youth exchanges, and promoting the sound, stable, and sustainable development of China-Maldives relations and China-South Asia relations, reaching positive consensus. Kong Xianhua, Chinese Ambassador to the Maldives, attended relevant events.
President Yang Wanming introduced the 9th China-South Asia Friendship Organizations Forum and mentioned that China and the Maldives have a long history of friendly exchanges. The two peoples have supported each other in the struggles against imperialism, colonialism, and fascism, forging a deep friendship. In recent years, under the strategic guidance and personal attention of two countries' leaders, China-Maldives comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership has continuously deepened, and the cooperation in the Belt and Road Initiative and various fields has achieved fruitful results. Both China and South Asia face the historical mission of developing their economies and improving people's livelihoods. The two sides have strong economic complementarity, great development potential, and broad cooperation prospects. With the implementation of the "15th Five-Year Plan", China will further deepen reforms and expand opening up, aiming to achieve qualitative improvements and reasonable growth in its economy, thus opening up broader space for cooperation between China and South Asia.
President Yang Wanming expressed that as China's earliest national organization engaged in people-to-people diplomacy, the CPAFFC will rely on mechanisms such as the Legislators Forum for Friendly Exchanges, the International Friendship Cities Conference, and the China-South Asia Friendship Organizations Forum to expand people-to-people dialogue channels for subnational governments, legislative bodies, and civil organizations between China and Maldives. President Yang expressed that the CPAFFC is willing to work with the Maldives to follow the important consensus reached by the leaders of two countries as the guiding principle, using people-to-people exchanges as the foundation, practical cooperation as the vehicle, cultural exchanges as the bond, and youth friendship as the strength point. The aim is to foster mutual understanding and affection between the two peoples, continuously enrich the content of the China-Malaysia comprehensive strategic partnership, and work together to promote the building of a closer China-South Asia community with a shared future.
The Maldivian side unanimously expressed that China is a trustworthy development partner. The friendly organizations of the two countries have made special contributions to the sustained healthy development of bilateral relations, becoming an important bridge for strengthening mutual understanding and affection between the two peoples. The Maldivian side expressed willingness to leverage its strengths, mobilize social forces, and help expand the Maldives-China friendly organizations, pushing bilateral cooperation in all areas to new heights.
Former President Mohamed Waheed highly praised the CPAFFC's contributions to promoting China-Maldives and China-South Asia people-to-people friendship, stating that the historical friendship between China and the Maldives dates back many years. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, bilateral relations have made great strides, and cooperation in all fields has yielded fruitful results. Chinese-supported projects such as power plants, schools, hospitals, and cultural centers have brought tangible benefits to the Maldivian people. The Maldivian side is willing to work with China to deepen cooperation in all areas, further developing the China-Maldives comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and contributing to regional peace, stability, and prosperity.
Minister Adam Shareef Umar extended a warm welcome to the delegation and expressed high expectations for the outcomes of the 9th China-South Asia Friendship Organizations Forum. He stated that China is a true friend of the Maldives. The potential for subnational cooperation between China and the Maldives is enormous, and they are eager to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in areas such as infrastructure construction and youth exchanges, benefiting two countries and their peoples. Additional Secretary Amin Javed Faizal expressed that the Maldives and China are good friends and partners with shared destiny. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1972, the two countries have always respected and supported each other, setting a model of equality, mutual assistance, and win-win cooperation. He noted that President Mohamed Muizzu's visits to China for two consecutive years fully demonstrate the Maldivian side's strong commitment to deepening China-Maldives relations and its enthusiasm for advancing bilateral cooperation. In recent years, under the Belt and Road Initiative, China has become a significant driver of the Maldivian economy. Key projects such as the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge and China-Maldives Friendship Hospital are powerful symbols of the China-Maldives comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. The Maldivian side expressed its willingness to uphold the One-China principle as the cornerstone of bilateral relations, and, together with China, to oppose hegemonism and power politics, while jointly safeguarding the common interests of developing countries.
Ji Yongjun, Deputy Secretary-General of the CPAFFC, accompanied the visit.
