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China will sign an investment agreement with ASEAN over the weekend to mark the completion of free-trade area (FTA) talks, a senior official said yesterday.
The pact will be inked at the 12th China-ASEAN Summit in Pattaya, Thailand, which Premier Wen Jiabao will attend.
Calling it a highlight of the summit, Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue said yesterday it means FTA negotiations have been concluded.
China and ASEAN, with a combined population of 1.9 billion, have agreed to complete implementing all FTA agreements by 2010.
"It seems that it will be completed smoothly on schedule," Hu said.
Trade last year between China and ASEAN stood at $230 billion, up 14 percent compared with 2007.
"We should promote the FTA and do all we can to maintain trade growth," Hu said.
Wen will also attend the 12th summit between ASEAN and China, Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK), the 4th East Asia Summit, and the breakfast meeting of leaders from China, Japan and the ROK.
Wen will elaborate on China's proposals to strengthen cooperation with East Asian countries and fight the global economic crisis.
"The financial crisis is a serious challenge to both China and ASEAN, and we should help each other like we did during the 1997 Asian financial crisis," Hu added.
He called for China and ASEAN to increase investment in each other's markets, primarily in infrastructure such as railways, roads, airports and bridges.
The membership of ASEAN, founded in 1967, consists of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Questions:
1. In which city in Thailand will the 12th China-ASEAN Summit take place?
2. When is China and ASEAN FTA agreements scheduled to be complete by?
3. In which year was ASEAN founded?
Answers:
1. Pattaya.
2. 2010.
3. 1967.
（英語(yǔ)點(diǎn)津 Helen 編輯）
Brendan joined The China Daily in 2007 as a language polisher in the Language Tips Department, where he writes a regular column for Chinese English Language learners, reads audio news for listeners and anchors the weekly video news in addition to assisting with on location stories. Elsewhere he writes Op’Ed pieces with a China focus that feature in the Daily’s Website opinion section.
He received his B.A. and Post Grad Dip from Curtin University in 1997 and his Masters in Community Development and Management from Charles Darwin University in 2003. He has taught in Japan, England, Australia and most recently China. His articles have featured in the Bangkok Post, The Taipei Times, The Asia News Network and in-flight magazines.
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