Speaker of the Chinese Parliament Zhang Dejiang in Israel on official visit 20 September 2016
Israeli Missions Around The World MFA Press Room 2016 Speaker of the Chinese Parliament Zhang Dejiang in Israel on official visit 20 September 2016
  • 2016

Speaker of the Chinese Parliament Zhang Dejiang in Israel on official visit

  • 9/20/2016
    •    
    The visit reflects the strengthening of relations between the two countries in recent years, as indicated by the increasing cooperation in the fields of trade, economy, science and technology, R&D and innovation, agriculture, health, education, and more.
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    PM Netanyahu with the Speaker of the Chinese Parliament, Zhang Dejiang in Jerusalem PM Netanyahu with the Speaker of the Chinese Parliament, Zhang Dejiang in Jerusalem : GPO/Amos Ben Gershom
     
     
    ​ (Communicated by the MFA Spokesperson)

    The Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China (the Speaker of the Chinese Parliament) Zhang Dejiang, arrived yesterday (Monday, 19 September 2016) on an official visit to Israel as guest of Knesset Chairman Yuli Edelstein. This is a reciprocal visit to the visit of Knesset Chairman Edelstein to China last April.

    This is the first visit to Israel in 16 years of a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China. The last visit of a member of the senior Chinese leadership to Israel was the visit of President of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Zemin in 2000.

    The visit of Chairman of the Chinese parliament in Israel reflects the strengthening of relations between the two countries in recent years, as indicated by the increasing cooperation in the fields of trade, economy, science and technology, R&D and innovation, agriculture, health, education, and more.

    Two intergovernmental platforms were established:
    An Innovation Committee comprised of more than ten government ministries and agencies from both countries and a joint economic task force.  

    The second meeting of the Innovation Committee was held last March at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the presence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China Liu Yandong.

    In further reflection of the strengthening of relations, the Vice President of the National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China (NDRC) will arrive in Israel this coming November at the head of a delegation of 200 people.

    Yesterday (Monday, 19 September) Chairman Zhang Dejiang met with PM Netanyahu. This morning he is scheduled to visit Yad Vashem - The World Holocaust Remembrance Center and later in the day will meet with President Reuven Rivlin and Knesset Chairman Edelstein, with whom he will sign a Memorandum of Understanding for bilateral parliamentary cooperation. On Thursday he will visit the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovoth.