On the morning of September 1, 2011, the first China-Eurasia Expo opening ceremony was held in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Li Keqiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council attended the ceremony, declared the opening of the Expo, visited the exhibition and met people of different nationalities. He pointed out that the China-Eurasia Expo as a platform helps to promote the opening of the inland and western areas of China and Xinjiang's development and to deepen China's cooperation with the central, western and southern Asian countries as well as European nations. The event will effectively boost the cooperation and development of Eurasia.
September is the season of harvest in Urumqi. The opening ceremony started at 10:00 am in Xinjiang International Exhibition Center. Amid the joyous melody, Li Keqiang, together with other distinguished participants in the Expo, including Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbayeva, Azerbaijani Vice Prime Minister Abid Sharifov, Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Aset Issekeshev and former Hungarian Prime Minister Medgyessy entered the conference hall. After officials of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the Ministry of Commerce delivered speeches, Li announced the opening of the Expo and together with other leaders inaugurated the color silk which symbolizes the close ties between Asia and Europe.
Prior to the opening ceremony, Li toured the exhibition. The Expo has six exhibition areas and more than 2,000 booths with themes on industry, agriculture, technology and finance. The dynamic large-screen displays, vivid simulation models, colorful pictures and various merchandizes demonstrate the economic and social development and technological innovations of China and other participating countries and the cooperation between Asian and European countries.
The 228 Xinjiang booths, with lively pictures and unique exhibits, well display the characteristics of the 14 prefectures of the autonomous region and Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps. Li visited the exhibition with deep interest. He fully recognized the achievements of economic and social development of Xinjiang and the Production and Construction Corps. At the booths of Urumqi and Kashi, he shook hands warmly with and talked to people there and expressed his gratitude and greetings to the veterans and model workers who had worked in Xinjiang for years. He said that carders and people of all nationalities belong to one family and a family that lives in harmony will prosper. He called on them to join hands together to build a better tomorrow of Xinjiang.
He stressed that the CPC Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the work of Xinjiang and General Secretary Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have made many important instructions. We must stick to the theme of building solidarity and seeking common prosperity and development of people of all nationalities, constantly consolidate and develop the socialist ethnic relations based on equality , unity , mutual assistance and harmony, strive to grow the economy, improve people's livelihood, advance harmony and stability and achieve development by leaps and bounds and long-term stability of Xinjiang.
Li then visited the booths of other provinces and municipalities and listened to introductions carefully. He encouraged the hosts of those booths to further support and to take part in Xinjiang's development, improve the cooperation mechanism of complementing each other with advantages and boost the coordinated economic growth of different areas. At the 19 booths of organizations which provide aid for Xinjiang, he extended warm greetings to the carders who had come to Xinjiang from Beijing and other places for aid purposes. He said that it is more than gold can buy when brothers think alike. Aiding Xinjiang is a major measure to help the autonomous region to grow. Their devotion to Xinjiang's development undertaking demonstrates the deep friendship among provinces and people of all nationalities. He hopes they continue to work hard and cooperate with the local carders and people to turn the grand blueprint of Xinjiang into reality. The audiences indicated their determination to continue to support Xinjiang's development and fulfill the trust of the Party and the people.
Following the design concept of "nursery of business and source of development", the Hong Kong booth uses a lot of green elements to display Hong Kong's dynamism and creativity. The Macao booth highlights the local investment environment and the concept of "made in Macao, Macao brand and designed by Macao". Li praised the unique design and colorful displays in the Hong Kong and Macao booths. He hopes Hong Kong and Macao capture more business opportunities to cooperate with mainland China.
More than 30 countries and regions participated in the Expo. Li also visited the booths of Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan to learn about their economic and trade cooperation intentions. He hopes related countries make best use of the platform of the Expo for win-win cooperation.
Vice Chairman of the National People's Congress Simayi Tieliwaerdi, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Donald Tsang and Chief Executive of the Macau Special Administrative Region Chui Sai On attended the opening ceremony and visited the Expo.
The first China-Eurasia Expo is co-hosted by the People's Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and 27 central government agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Development and Reform Commission and co-sponsored by the trade and industry agencies and investment promotion departments of Russia and Kazakhstan, Secretariat of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. As an international comprehensive Expo, it provides a wide range of activities including trade in goods, investment cooperation, cultural exchanges and special forums.