# Joint Press Statement by MFA, MTI & MND on the 17th Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) Joint Steering Council (JSC), the 8th Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city (SSTEC) JSC, and the 12th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) Meetings on 13 October 2015

- **Source:** Ministry of National Development
- **Published:** 2015-10-13T11:00:00.000Z
- **Author:** Ministry of National Development
- **Original:** https://www.mnd.gov.sg/newsroom/press-releases/view/joint-press-statement-by-mfa-mti-mnd-on-the-17th-suzhou-industrial-park-sip-joint-steering-council-jsc-the-8th-sino-singapore-tianjin-eco-city-sstec-jsc-and-the-12th-joint-council-for-bilateral-cooperation-jcbc-meetings-on-13-october-2015
- **Topics:** Commercial & Industrial, New Launches, Investment & Capital Markets

## Featured rationale

The four projects signal sustained institutional support for smart and sustainable urban development, potentially strengthening the Eco-city’s infrastructure and development capabilities.

## AI summary

Singapore and China signed an MOU covering water management, smart-city development, green buildings and gardens in the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city.

## Original article

Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean and Member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Gaoli co-chaired the 17th SIP JSC, 8th SSTEC JSC, and the 12th JCBC meetings on 13 October 2015. 

The 17th SIP JSC meeting affirmed Singapore and China’s commitment to the development of SIP and laid out directions for SIP’s future development. To stay relevant and competitive, SIP is piloting innovative measures to enhance its administrative efficiency and the development of its services sector. In line with China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative, SIP will establish the National-level Outbound Investment Demonstration Platform, to serve as a domestic launchpad for Chinese companies that are internationalising. Both sides also discussed the deepening of Sino-Singapore bilateral cooperation in the SIP, particularly, in the areas of software exchange, finance, education, research and smart city development. 

At the 8th SSTEC JSC meeting, Singapore and China reaffirmed the achievements of the Eco-city, and reiterated their commitment to the Eco-city’s continued development and success. Both sides are working closely together to implement a Three-Year Work Plan to prepare for the Eco-city’s 10th anniversary in 2018. After the JSC meeting, the Singapore Ministry of National Development and the People’s Republic of China Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development signed a Memorandum of Understanding on four joint collaborative projects in the Eco-city: a) Demonstration City for Water Resources Management; b) Smart City Development; c) Green Building Demonstration Base; and d) Garden Project. These four projects are part of the Three-Year Work Plan. 

During the 12th JCBC meeting, the co-Chairs reviewed the rapid growth in Singapore-China relations in the past 25 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, and agreed to build on this strong foundation to set the direction for even closer and more meaningful cooperation in the next 25 years. 

The meeting had further discussions on the upgrade of the China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (CSFTA) and the proposed third Government-to-Government (G-to-G) project in China’s western region, and agreed that both should proceed in parallel. Both sides agreed to work towards a CSFTA upgrade that is substantive, mutually beneficial, and with a level of ambition befitting our special relationship. Specifically, both sides agreed to improve the Investment chapter under the CSFTA upgrade. Both sides agreed that the third G-to-G project should likewise be of high standard and set new benchmarks, in line with the vision articulated by President Xi Jinping to make the third G-to-G project a priority demonstrative project for China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative, the Western Region Development and the Yangtze River Economic Belt strategies. The third project should focus on one core city in China’s western region, based on the theme of “Modern Connectivity and Modern Services”. The project would focus on four sectors of collaboration: financial, aviation, logistics, and ICT. 

The meeting discussed bilateral cooperation in the areas of economic transformation, finance, people-to-people exchanges, and, inclusive and sustainable development. On financial services, Singapore and China agreed to further promote the international use of Renminbi (RMB), through new initiatives[1] that broaden the cross-border RMB channels between Singapore and China. Given the rapidly growing use of the RMB for payments, trade settlement and investments globally, Singapore expressed support for the inclusion of the RMB in the International Monetary Fund’s Special Drawing Rights basket of currencies. Singapore and China also look forward to enhancing financial connectivity to support projects under the “One Belt, One Road” initiative, to facilitate access by Chinese companies to ASEAN markets through Singapore. 

Following the meeting, the co-Chairs witnessed the signing of four agreements. Besides the MOU on the four projects in the SSTEC, agreements were signed on the establishment of (i) the China Cultural Centre in Singapore, (ii) the “Overseas Investment Service Platform” in the SIP, and (iii) a Centre of Excellence for Software Transfer in the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City.

## Chinese translation

> Translation model: grok_cli

### 外交部、贸工部及国家发展部关于2015年10月13日举行的第17次苏州工业园区（SIP）联合协调理事会（JSC）、第8次中新天津生态城（SSTEC）联合协调理事会及第12次双边合作联合委员会（JCBC）会议的联合新闻声明

副总理兼国家安全统筹部长张志贤与中共中央政治局常委、中华人民共和国国务院副总理张高丽于2015年10月13日共同主持第17次苏州工业园区联合协调理事会、第8次中新天津生态城联合协调理事会及第12次双边合作联合委员会会议。

第17次苏州工业园区联合协调理事会会议重申新中双方对苏州工业园区发展的承诺，并规划了园区未来发展方向。为保持相关与竞争力，园区正试点创新措施，以提高行政效率并推动服务业发展。配合中国“一带一路”倡议，园区将建立国家级“走出去”投资示范平台，作为中国企业国际化的国内起航基地。双方亦讨论深化中新在园区内的双边合作，尤其是在软件交流、金融、教育、研究及智慧城市发展等领域。

在第8次中新天津生态城联合协调理事会会议上，新中双方重申生态城所取得的成就，并再次承诺继续推动生态城的发展与成功。双方正密切合作，落实三年工作计划，为2018年生态城十周年作准备。联合协调理事会会议后，新加坡国家发展部与中华人民共和国住房和城乡建设部签署关于生态城四项联合合作项目的谅解备忘录：a）水资源管理示范城市；b）智慧城市发展；c）绿色建筑示范基地；以及d）花园项目。这四项项目均为三年工作计划的一部分。

在第12次双边合作联合委员会会议上，共同主席回顾自建交以来25年新中关系的快速增长，并同意在此坚实基础上，为未来25年更紧密、更有意义的合作定下方向。

会议就《中国—新加坡自由贸易协定》（CSFTA）升级及拟议在中国西部地区开展的第三个政府间（G-to-G）项目作进一步讨论，并同意两者应并行推进。双方同意推动一项实质性、互利共赢、并符合我们特殊关系雄心水平的CSFTA升级。具体而言，双方同意在CSFTA升级中改进投资章节。双方同意，第三个政府间项目同样应具备高水准并树立新标杆，符合习近平主席所提出的愿景，即将第三个政府间项目打造为中国“一带一路”倡议、西部大开发及长江经济带战略的优先示范项目。该第三项目应聚焦中国西部一个核心城市，以“现代互联互通与现代服务”为主题。项目将聚焦四大合作领域：金融、航空、物流及信息通信技术（ICT）。

会议讨论了经济转型、金融、人文交流以及包容与可持续发展等领域的双边合作。在金融服务方面，新中双方同意通过拓宽新中跨境人民币渠道的新举措[1]，进一步推动人民币（RMB）的国际使用。鉴于人民币在全球支付、贸易结算及投资中的使用快速增长，新加坡表示支持将人民币纳入国际货币基金组织特别提款权货币篮子。新中双方亦期待加强金融互联互通，以支持“一带一路”倡议下的项目，并便利中国企业通过新加坡进入东盟市场。

会议结束后，共同主席见证了四项协议的签署。除关于中新天津生态城四项项目的谅解备忘录外，还签署了关于（i）在新加坡设立中国文化中心、（ii）在苏州工业园区设立“海外投资服务平台”，以及（iii）在中新广州知识城设立软件转移卓越中心的协议。