Diplomats and officials from China and the Dominican Republic toast the opening of the Consulate General of the Dominican Republic in Shanghai on May 29, 2023 in Shanghai. Photo: Feng Yu/GT

The Dominican Republic launched its consulate general in Shanghai on Monday with diplomats and officials from the Embassy of the Dominican Republic and China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Shanghai municipal government attending the event to celebrate the inauguration.

The Consulate General of the Dominican Republic in Shanghai is the first consulate general of the Dominican Republic established in the Chinese mainland.

"Five years ago, China and the Dominican Republic established diplomatic ties on the basis of the one-China principle, ushering in a new chapter of friendly cooperation between our two nations. It's a great pleasure to gather here today to witness the inauguration of the consulate general," said Wu Xi, director-general of the Consular Affairs Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Victor Nicolas, consul general of the new consulate, told the gathering that "for the Dominican Republic, the establishment of this consulate is of great importance to the hundreds of its nationals settled in this beautiful land. In addition, it will offer support to the more than 3,000 Dominican tourists who are expected to arrive annually in China."

The jurisdiction of the consulate general covers Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangxi provinces. The consul general said that "the territories have a thriving economy, with which we hope to develop an exchange within the framework of mutual benefit, through the transfer of knowledge that they have in the urban, industrial, agricultural, academic and logistical areas, among other aspects, extrapolating this valuable experience to the Dominican people."

"In recent years, under the care of the heads of state, China-Dominican Republic relations have maintained positive momentum. Political mutual trust between our two nations has continuously strengthened and fruitful outcomes have been achieved in practical cooperation," Wu said, adding that in 2022, bilateral trade reached $4.838 billion, up 11.6 percent year-on-year, despite the disruption of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Wu said that people-to-people exchanges between the two countries are close, with the Dominican Republic being a popular outbound travel destination for Chinese citizens and China being the largest source of tourists from Asia to the Dominican Republic.

"We all believe that the Consulate General will inject new impetus into the expansion of local exchanges and cooperation between both nations, further enriching the essence of the China-Dominican Republic relations," Wu said.

Ambassador of the Dominican Republic in China, Briunny Garabito Segura, told the gathering that bilateral trade between the two countries has increased 195 percent since 2018. In the field of investment, eight Chinese enterprises have registered in the free trade zone in the Dominican Republic. In addition, the ambassador thanked China's efforts and support for his country's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Though there is a long distance between Shanghai and the Dominican Republic, we have a Chinese saying that 'nothing, not even mountains or oceans, can separate people with shared goals and vision.' The opening of the Consulate General of the Dominican Republic in Shanghai not only opens a window for us to understand and get acquainted with the Dominican Republic, but also builds a bridge of friendship to promote exchanges and strengthen cooperation," said Zhang Xiong, deputy secretary general of the Shanghai municipal government.