On October 7th, Mr. Zhou Youbin, the newly appointed Chinese Consul General in Penang, arrived in Penang to assume office. Penang State Executive Councillor Madam Chong Eng, Chairman of Penang Chinese Town Hall Tan Sri Tan Khoon Hai, President of Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce Dato’ Seri Hong Yeam Wah, President of Malaysia Chinese Enterprises Association North Malaysia Branch Mr. Liu Zhenhua, Deputy Consul General Madam Zhang Li and the staff of Chinese Consulate General in Penang received the Consul General.

    On behalf of the Penang State Government, Penang State Executive Councillor Madam Chong Eng warmly welcomed Consul General Mr. Zhou Youbin, and expressed the willingness to actively provide support and convenience for Consul General Mr. Zhou to fulfill his duties. She expected to continue to strengthen the cooperation with Chinese Consulate General in Penang and to jointly promote the development of friendly relations between Penang state and Chinese provinces and cities. Tan Sri Tan Khoon Hai, Dato’ Seri Hong Yeam Wah and Mr. Liu Zhenhua also expressed their congratulations and warm welcome to Consul General Mr. Zhou, and said that they had high expectations on the broad prospects of the win-win cooperation between the localities of China and Malaysia and the good momentum of the development of the Chinese enterprises in the consular district.

    Consul General Mr. Zhou thanked everyone for their warm welcome and expressed his gratitude to the Penang State Government for the thoughtful arrangements. Consul General Mr. Zhou said that Penang is a famous historical state with beautiful scenery and diverse cultures. Penang has enjoyed a time-honored history of exchange with China and its cooperation with China is advancing rapidly. It is a great honor to be appointed as the Chinese Consul General in Penang and the sincere wish is to further enhance communication and close cooperation with everyone, make every effort to promote friendly exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and various areas in the consular district, enhance mutual understanding and friendship between people of both countries, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens in the consular district, and provide high-quality consular services to people from all walks of life in the consular district.

    Consul General Mr. Zhou said that the Communist Party of China will convene its 20th National Congress soon. This Congress will set well-conceived goals, tasks and policies for the cause of the Party and the country in the next five years and beyond, and it will draw an overarching plan for China’s future development. China’s development will provide new development opportunities for Malaysia, ASEAN and even all the countries in the world. The four states in Northern Malaysia, including Penang, Perak, Kedah and Perlis will also face better opportunities. As the 5th China International Import Expo is coming soon, friends from all walks of life in the consular district are welcome to actively participate in the expo. Consul General Mr. Zhou also expressed his hope that Chinese enterprises will seize the opportunity to further deepen the cooperation with their counterparts, unite the people of all sectors in the consular district, and help to promote the friendship between China and Malaysia. My colleagues and I are committed to work together with the governments of the four states in Northern Malaysia and people from all walks of life in the consular district to solidify and deepen the pragmatic cooperation between localities of China and Malaysia, and help to lead us toward new advances in the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Malaysia.