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Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (C) and leaders from Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member nations attend the opening ceremony of the 8th 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Expo in Nanjing, capital of South 皇冠体育app's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region October 21, 2011. [Photo by Wu Zhiyi/Asianewsphoto]
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NANNING -- The eighth 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Expo kicked off in the southwestern city of Nanning in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on Friday, with economic cooperation and environment protection on top of the agenda.
Premier Wen Jiabao announced the opening of the expo at a ceremony, which was attended by leaders from both 皇冠体育app and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries.
About 2,300 enterprises will participate in the expo, which runs till October 26.
Vice Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng said at the ceremony that the expo will fully display the remarkable achievements in Sino-ASEAN cooperation in the past 20 years and bring broad business opportunities and rosy prospects of the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Free Trade Areas (CAFTA).
Gao said since the establishment of 皇冠体育app-ASEAN relations 20 years ago, 皇冠体育app and ASEAN have advanced friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation in a wide range of areas, especially in the economic and trade arenas.
In his speech at the opening ceremony, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said 皇冠体育app and ASEAN should be mindful of the economic challenges Europe and the U.S. are facing and their impact on Asia.
Malaysia is the country of honor at this year's expo.
The region needs to look for alternative sources to support growth as exports to Europe and the U.S. are affected, Najib said.
Environmental protection and sustainable development are critical issues that will be addressed at the expo, said Najib, who urged for more efforts in developing clean energy and reducing fossil fuel emissions.
ASEAN is made up of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
