Suriname: President Chandrikapersad Santokhi commences 6 day visit to China

Suriname: Chandrikapersad Santokhi, the President of Suriname travelled to China today for an official visit aimed at boosting bilateral ties. The visit will align with the occasion of fifth year anniversary of strategic cooperative partnership between China and Suriname.

The Spokesperson from the Foreign Ministry announced the development and said that on the invitation of President Xi Jinping, the Surinamese President will be paying a state visit to China.

According to the reports, the visit will last from April 12 to 20, concluding in the Hangzhou province. The six-day visit will mainly focus on strengthening the bilateral relationships between China and Suriname and signing of cooperation treaties.

One such agreement would be the formal sign-off of 545 million dollar debt on Suriname credited by Chinese granters, which has currently been negotiated on the grounds of bilateral relationships between the countries.

The President has also planned a visit to Dalian and Shenzhen to discuss the potential and existing scopes of investment from companies planning to invest in Suriname and those who already do.

The reports also added that the visit will comprise of discussions on several new projects including debt refinancing along with a meeting with more than ten thriving companies who are interested to invest in Suriname.

President Santokhi expressed his hopes prior to the visit by stating that apart from meeting with President Xi Jinping, he is also excited to meet Prime Minister and the Chairman of the Communist Party. Notably, Suriname has friendly relations with China for the past 48 years, involving various cooperation programs, but now he is looking forward to explore new dimensions of these relations.

President Santokhi is going to meet the Surinamese students studying there, as he expressed that he wants to encourage the students to continue their studies and return to Suriname with excellence. He will be accompanied by his deputes, which includes prominent stakeholders from distinct sectors of Suriname.

Notably, the Prime Minister of Dominica Dr Roosevelt Skerrit also visited China recently, which makes Suriname the second CARICOM country to visit China within a month.