By Minerva BC Newman

Cebu City (31 October) -- Yantai City, known also as the "International Vine and Wine City" of China, has formally extended an offer for a sister-city relationship with Cebu City as President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo arrived in China for a five province official visit to the People's Republic of China (PRoC) to forge stronger bilateral, economic and trade ties with China.

Yantai City has a population of over 6 million with an area of almost 14000 square kilometers, is one of the first 14 coastal cities in China that opened up to the outside world. The city's economic and social situation became progressive after it adopted the reforms and opening-up policy.

It boosts of its booming state-level Economic and Technological Industrial Park and 10-provincial level economic Zones and it played an important role in the Pan-Bohai Sea Economic Circle and has been very active in foreign exchanges and cooperation over the years, specifically establishing sister-city relationship with 13 cities from 10 countries around the world, and Cebu City is one of them.

Yantai City Mayor Sun Yongchun recently wrote Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmena about his interest to establish a sister-city relationship with Cebu City due to the latter's famous tourism, shipping and exhibition industries, among others.

Yongchun told Osmena that he believed that the sister-city pact between both cities would deepen understanding, enhance friendship, and promote cooperation that is beneficial an prosperous for both cities. "With the contacts from the International Liaison Department, Central Committee of Youth League of China, I feel delighted to acknowledge that the City of Cebu is interested in developing sister-city relations with the City of Yantai," Yongchun wrote.

Meantime, the President's visit to Jiangxi, a sister city of Bohol, coincided with the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between the two provinces expanding their trade and friendly relations.