President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and President Xi Jinping of People's Republic of China pose for a photo prior to their expanded bilateral meeting at the Malacañan Palace on November 20, 2018. RICHARD MADELO/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

A seventh engagement between President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping is likely this year during the April 2019 Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, Chinese Ambassador to Manila Zhao Jianhua said.

“China has sincerely invited President Rodrigo Duterte to attend the aforesaid forum. We are looking forward to the 7th meeting between the leaders of our two countries,” he said in a speech during the Chinese New Year Reception in Makati City.

Should the Filipino leader attend the forum and meet Xi, Zhao expressed confidence that a new meeting between both will chart “a more magnificent blueprint” for the China-Philippines bilateral relations.

Under the administration of Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines follows a compartmentalized approach in engaging China by adopting separate tracks in improving economic and cultural ties while at the same time addressing the issue of territorial dispute.

Last November, Xi conducted a historic state visit to the Philippines, a first of its kind in a decade. During the occasion, the ties between both countries were elevated into a “comprehensive strategic cooperation”.

During their meeting, both leaders sought ways to enhance trade and exchange of investments promotion and tackled infrastructure development in the Philippines, particularly the country’s “Build, Build, Build” program.

At least 29 agreements were signed during Xi’s visit, covering several areas of cooperation in various fields.

Among these is the memorandum of understanding on cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative, which is a Chinese effort to bolster connectivity in Asia, Africa and Europe through unimpeded trade, financial integration and infrastructure connectivity, seeking to establish the modern Silk Road in the region.

Zhao said cooperation between China and the Philippines has brought growing benefits that resulted in China topping the list of foreign investments last year to P48.7 billion which was an 8,364 percent increase from the P575.8 million Chinese infusions in 2017.

“China has been the Philippines’ No. 1 trading partner and import origin and the fourth largest export market,” he said.

Local companies sold $124 million worth of goods and services during the first China International Import Expo held in Shanghai last November.

China also imported more than two million tons of tropical fruits from the Philippines over the past two years that generated a revenue of more than $1.5 billion for 40,000 Filipino farmers, Zhao said.

“In 2018, the Philippines has received more than 1.25 million Chinese tourists, achieving a 29.6 percent year-on-year increase,” he added.

Funded by China’s grants or soft loans, the construction of the drug rehabilitation centers, two bridges over Pasig River and the Chico River Pump Irrigation Project, as well as other infrastructure projects have also made positive progress.

“Over the past two years, under the guidance of our two leaders, China-Philippines relations have achieved an overall turnaround, enjoyed a sustained growth with strength and depth and surged forward along a fast track,” the ambassador added.

Zhao said the progress could not have been achieved without support from the friends of China “from all walks of life” and the Chinese communities in the Philippines.

“Let us work hand-in-hand to implement the important consensus reached by our two leaders, promote the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in a comprehensive manner and forge an even brighter golden era of bilateral ties,” he said.

China’s top diplomat in Manila praised the “sustained betterment and growth” in Philippines-China relations as tourist arrivals from Beijing increased and the construction of China-funded infrastructure projects in the country progressed “positively” in 2018.