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BUDAPEST, Nov. 27-- Visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday called for advancing cooperation between China and 16 Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC), also known as the 16+1 cooperation. As an important part of and a helpful complement to China-Europe ties, 16+1 cooperation has promoted the development of China-Europe relations, Li said in a keynote speech to the seventh China-CEEC Economic and Trade Forum held in the Hungarian capital city of Budapest. The premier called for docking the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative with the development strategies of the CEEC and taking the lead in implementing the results of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe. Speaking to over 1,000 entrepreneurs from China and the CEEC at the opening ceremony of the forum, Li also demanded efforts to accelerate the building of connectivity projects such as the Hungary-Serbia railway and promote the healthy development of China-Europe freight train services. Production capacity is also an area where the two sides should expand cooperation, said Li, calling for jointly building economic and trade cooperation zones and creating an industrial chain, value chain and logistics chain featuring closer integration, stronger drive and wider benefit. Li also called upon the two sides to boost trade and investment liberalization and facilitation by strengthening customs cooperation and speeding up logistics, and to promote cooperation in the fields of small and medium-sized enterprises. | 
