The third session of the 14th Shandong Provincial People's Congress kicked off in Jinan, Shandong, on Jan 20, with foreign consuls general in attendance expressing excitement at the prospect of deepening cooperation with Shandong and Qingdao.

Sata Arayakul, Thailand's consul general in Qingdao, stated that Shandong's GDP is close to 10 trillion yuan ($1.38 trillion). Having lived in Qingdao for a year, he was deeply impressed by the beautiful scenery, delicious food, and warm hospitality of the people of Shandong, making him feel right at home.

Yoshida Chikumi, chief consul of the Consulate General of Japan in Qingdao, expressed her desire to convey the charm of "friendly Shandong" to Japan. She looks forward to the development of mutually beneficial economic relations and the expansion of people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

The Consul General of South Korea in Qingdao, Ryu Chang-soo, stated that South Korea has enormous potential for cooperation with Shandong in various fields such as economy, tourism, cultural exchange, and education. He looks forward to further deepening economic and trade exchanges between South Korea and China, and will invite more South Korean friends to visit Shandong.