Tonga and China will celebrate the 15th anniversary of their diplomatic relations on November 2, while looking forward to continuing development assistance along with opportunities for Chinese enterprises to invest in Tonga.

China has also expressed an interest in closer coordination and cooperation with Tonga in international and regional affairs.

In a statement on October 25, the Chinese Ambassador to Tonga, HE Mr Wang Donghua gave a brief over-view of how the diplomatic relations between the two countries had developed since 2 November 1998.

He noted that recently Tonga had become a destination for Chinese tourists, after a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the two countries to facilitate group traveling.

“More Chinese business people came to explore the opportunities for investment in Tonga, and the Pacific International Commercial Bank, is the first China-Tonga joint venture, came into being,” he stated.

He noted that visits of Tongans to China and various mutual exchanges had “given new impetus to the overall relationship between our two countries.”

“The landing of the China Central Television (CCTV) News Channel and the China Radio International in Tonga has opened a new window to update Tongans on what is happening in China on a daily basis.”

Mr Donghua believed that the friendly relationship between China and Tonga served the fundamental interests of the two countries, and contributed "to the realization of our respective dreams of development . . . the Chinese Dream and the Tongan Dream."

He said that during the next five years, China is expected to import USD 10 trillion of goods, while investing USD 500 billion in other countries, and over 400 million Chinese tourists would travel overseas.

Cooperation

He said that China-Tonga relationship was entering the “best stage since its inception,” and China was ready to work with Tonga to strengthen the relationship and cooperation in the following aspects:

- to deepen the mutual political trust to grow the relationship;

- for both sides to “identify priorities for cooperation that could maximize the combination of China's advantages like market, capital and technology with Tonga's unique resources in various industries like tourism, agriculture, fishery and renewable energy… and encourage Chinese enterprises to invest in Tonga”;

- “more thrust is expected to be given to the cultural and people to people exchanges to enhance the mutual understanding and friendship between our two peoples

- “we would like to have closer coordination and cooperation with Tonga in international and regional affairs …”;

Mr Donghua believed that the relationship between the two countries could be further advanced.

Diplomatic relations at an ambassadorial level between the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Tonga was formally signed in Beijing by the then Prime Minister, Prince 'Ulukalala Lavaka Ata, (now King Tupou VI), and Mr Tang Jiaxuan,  then Foreign Minister of China on 26 October 1998.

Mr Donghua pointed out that during the past 15 years there had been  increasing multifaceted exchanges between China and Tonga on all fronts, political, economic, infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, education and cultural exchanges. These included frequent high-level visits, infrastructure development, including the upgrading of over 120kms of roads, the Vaipua Bridge in Vava'u, a new Vuna Wharf, the MA60 aircraft, Nuku'alofa CBD reconstruction, Tonga High School and Ha‘apai High School construction, and Chinese language teachers, along with Chinese scholarships for over 100 Tongan students.

Chinese Ambassador to Tonga, HE Mr Wang Donghua