The governments of El Salvador and the People’s Republic of China announced yesterday the start of negotiations to soon sign a free trade agreement between the two nations, in order to take advantage of the potential of bilateral economic and trade cooperation.
The announcement was initially made by the spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China at a conference in Beijing, the capital of China, and reiterated yesterday afternoon by the Salvadoran president, Nayib Bukele, and the Chinese ambassador, Ou Jianhong, during a donation of 930 tons of wheat flour and 1,450 tons of fertilizer for Salvadoran farmers, as a measure to mitigate the impact of the global economic crisis.
“In order to further tap the potential of bilateral economic and trade cooperation and enhance the level of cooperation, China and El Salvador are willing to start the bilateral free trade agreement negotiation process as soon as possible and hold negotiations jointly,” said a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
In this regard, the Salvadoran leader stressed that the free trade agreement will open a range of economic growth opportunities for El Salvador, which established relations with China after breaking them with Taiwan in August 2018.
“It is not every day that a treaty of this type is announced, and less so with a world power such as the People’s Republic of China. El Salvador is a small country that must open up to the world. We must understand that the opportunities are in many places, and we must take them all because this will lead us to the development we want,” said the president, who also took advantage of the moment to highlight the advances in public security and the fight against gangs.
Likewise, the president reiterated: “The only thing we ask is that they see us as an independent, sovereign, and dignified country” and that there is a willingness to “work side by side, step by step, to build a better country.”
In relation to the treaty, the Chinese ambassador declared that “the two countries have become united nations, overcoming cultural differences,” and because bilateral trade has increased, “work is being done on the process of establishing” that trade agreement. .
The Chinese embassy in El Salvador also published a statement on Twitter in which it ratified the strong ties of friendship between the two countries and the start of negotiations on the trade agreement.
In 2019, President Bukele traveled to China and negotiated important cooperation for the construction of a new library, a new national stadium, and several water projects.