Betsy Shieh, commercial counselor of the US Consulate General in Guangzhou, meets with Xiamen officials during her visit to the coastal city in Fujian province on Oct 25. [Photo/xmfo.gov.cn]
The coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province extended a warm welcome to a visiting US delegation on Oct 25.
The delegation was headed by Betsy Shieh, commercial counselor of the US Consulate General in Guangzhou. It's her first trip to Xiamen since she took office in August.
Yao Jianhong, deputy head of the Xiamen foreign and overseas Chinese affairs office, briefed the delegation on the city's economic development.
As a popular tourist city along China's southeast coast and a major MICE (meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions) city, Xiamen sticks to the vision of open and inclusive development, according to Yao.
Xiamen has maintained close cooperation and exchanges with the US. It established sister city ties with Baltimore about three decades ago and has maintained regular exchanges with Seattle, Sarasota and San Diego, Yao said.
China has decided to extend its visa waiver policy to ordinary passport holders from Canada and the United Kingdom starting from Feb 17.
Forty-one new port-of-entry duty-free shops have been established nationwide, with Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport, Xiamen Wutong Passenger Wharf, and Xiamen International Cruise Center included on the list.
