Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam recently led a business delegation to end their visit to the Gulf countries of Qatar and Kuwait. During the 5-day trip, a total of 59 memorandums of understanding and agreements were reached, covering areas such as economy, trade, investment, financial services, technology, law, aviation, customs, and tourism. This further consolidated the friendly relations between Hong Kong and the Middle East region, and promoted economic, trade, and cultural exchanges with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. This visit is not only Li Jiachao's second trip to the Middle East since taking office, but also the first time that mainland enterprises have participated in a Hong Kong business delegation's overseas visit. The members include more than 30 Hong Kong business and professional leaders, as well as more than 20 mainland entrepreneurs from Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong and other places. Li Jiachao summarized the visit by stating that this trip to the Middle East has leveraged Hong Kong's advantages in internal and external communication under the "One Country, Two Systems" policy, deepened international exchanges and cooperation, and demonstrated the synergistic effect of complementary advantages between Hong Kong and the mainland. Several political and business figures have stated that the Chief Executive's trip to the Middle East is the first time he has partnered with mainland enterprises, achieving the effect of "one plus one is greater than two". On the one hand, creating a model for "merging ships and going global" has opened a new chapter of resonance between Hong Kong and mainland enterprises; On the other hand, it has strengthened the information connectivity between the Middle East and Hong Kong markets, helping to tell the stories of Hong Kong and China well. Compared to the first visit to the Middle East in 2023, this trip has yielded more fruitful results. In Qatar, government departments, enterprises, and institutions from Hong Kong, mainland China, and Qatar have reached 35 cooperation memorandums and agreements. Two of the agreements were directly reached between mainland China and Qatar enterprises, focusing on cooperation in financial services and high-end manufacturing. There is also a letter of intent jointly signed by Hong Kong, mainland China, and Qatar, promoting cooperation in financial technology, including Web3 and artificial intelligence. In Kuwait, a total of 24 memorandums of understanding and cooperation agreements have been reached, of which 4 are related to cooperation between the Hong Kong SAR government and the Kuwaiti government, and the rest involve cooperation between enterprises, covering areas such as economy and trade, investment, financial services, technology, law, customs clearance and movement of goods, aviation, and tertiary education. The Chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Industries, Zhuang Zixiong, who accompanied the delegation, said that this trip successfully enhanced mutual understanding and opened up new channels of cooperation. Qatar and Kuwait are actively developing new industries such as smart cities and renewable energy, which is highly consistent with Hong Kong's development direction in innovative technology and new industries. The delegation believes that by combining the advantages of Hong Kong and mainland enterprises, more cooperation opportunities can be created in these fields, further leveraging Hong Kong's role as a "super contact" and "super value-added person". At Hamad International Airport in Qatar, the pilot project of unmanned buses and logistics tractors involving mainland enterprise Yushi Technology is gradually advancing, setting a precedent for the application of autonomous driving technology in airports in the Middle East. This science and technology innovation enterprise with an international headquarters in Hong Kong has achieved "going global" in technology and services through the "super springboard" of Hong Kong. A large number of mainland technology companies can start their second business in Hong Kong and go global from Hong Kong, "said Wu Gansha, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Yushi Technology Co., Ltd. Jiadu Technology, an artificial intelligence technology product and service company headquartered in Guangzhou, is one of the mainland enterprises that will be accompanying the delegation on this visit. By leveraging Hong Kong's role as a 'super contact', we can effectively avoid the localization barriers that may be faced when working alone, and promote technological co creation, capital co investment, and market co expansion, "said Chen Jiao, CEO of the group. Lin Jianyue, member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and Chairman of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, stated that as an international city in the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong is not only the main gateway to the vast mainland market, but also adjacent to multiple important Asian economies, making it the best access point for enterprises to access the mainland and other Asian markets. Hong Kong economist and director of the Silk Road Wisdom Valley Research Institute, Leung Hoi ming, believes that Hong Kong can leverage its professional capabilities in infrastructure financing, risk management, legal arbitration, tax consulting, and other fields to enhance its overall competitiveness by partnering with mainland enterprises to participate in the planning and implementation of overseas projects, including those in the Middle East. At the same time, introducing foreign investment in a flexible and efficient manner allows investment activities to be carried out with ease. Another highlight of this trip is the implementation of visa free treatment. During the visit, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates successively granted Hong Kong a 30 day visa free arrangement, and Oman extended the visa free entry period from the 15th of this month. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport enjoys visa free or visa on arrival treatment in all six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, adding momentum to cultural, tourism, and economic and trade cooperation between the two sides. Zheng Xiangling, President of the Hong Kong Chinese Association, stated that this visit is not only a win-win journey to explore business opportunities and promote cooperation, but also a demonstration journey to leverage Hong Kong's advantages to promote cross-border technology transformation and industrial upgrading. It is an outstanding response of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to the country's high-level opening-up strategy. (New Society)