Chinese president's Singapore visit to benefit bilateral ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping's first state visit to Singapore this week will provide the platform for both countries to look at how to reposition the bilateral relationship, a top diplomat said on Tuesday.

Chinese ambassador to Singapore Chen Xiaodong said that during Xi's two-day (Friday, Saturday) visit he will be meeting his Singapore counterpart Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Channel News Asia reported.

"The visit will inject new directions and momentum into bilateral relations and open up a new chapter for the relationship ? The visit will underline Singapore-China cooperation and friendship. The people of China and Singapore, as well as people all over the world, will be able to feel the warmth of the relationship," the envoy said.

Both sides will sign an agreement to lay the foundations for a third government-to-government urban mega project in western China. The focus of the new project will be on "modern connectivity and modern services".

There will be an upgrade of the Singapore-China Free Trade Agreement to further promote bilateral trade, while both countries will also sign a deal to cooperate on relevant "one belt and one road" projects - an ambitious initiative to connect East and West trade launched by Xi to sustain China's economic growth going forward. Other agreements on educational exchanges, customs, finance and urban governance are also in the works.

China is Singapore's largest trading partner, while Singapore is the largest investor in China.