The second Great Mekong Subregion (GMS) Environmental Ministers Meeting was held in Vientiane, Laos on Jan. 29. Environment officials of ministerial level and representatives of member countries attended the meeting and announced Joint Declaration of Environmental Ministers of Great Mekong Sub-region after the meeting.

SEPA Vice Minister Wu Xiaoqing led a delegation to participate in the meeting and made important speeches. Wu introduced the latest development of China's environmental policies and expressed wishes to cooperate with other member countries of the subregion to protect the only planet we human beings depend on. He stressed that the real economic conditions, history and cultural tradition of each country should be given into adequate consideration in subregional cooperation. We need to enhance dialogue, seek common ground and set aside differences and enhance cooperation for mutual benefit. As an initiator and advocator of subregional environmental cooperation, China will further participate in core projects concerning environment in all-round way, facilitate biodiversity corridor project and make it a flagship in subregional environmental cooperation. Through this project efforts will be made to promote ecological rehabilitation, poverty relief, protection of forest eco-system and biodiversity and implementation of international environmental conventions to boost the building of environmental management institutions and capacity building activities.

Wu Xiaoqing made three suggestions on environmental cooperation in Great Mekong subregion including strengthening role of member countries in leading the projects, building name brand of cooperation projects and calling for stronger support of ADB on environmental projects. His remarks and suggestions evoked positive response among the participating ministers. 

During the meeting participants also reviewed the first GMS Environment Ministers Meeting held in Shanghai in May 2005, the Second Meeting for Leaders of GMS held in Kunming in Jul 2005 and the latest development of core environmental projects with the construction of biodiversity corridor as the main part. They exchanged views on how to enrich the content and outcome of the third leaders meeting to be held in Vientiane, Laos in March 2008.

The Joint Declaration of Environmental Ministers of Great Mekong Sub-region is an important outcome of this meeting. Ministers reiterated their political will to strengthen environmental protection and sustainable development through the declaration and resolved to enhance environmental cooperation in the subregion.

As one of the major mechanisms for environmental cooperation of East Asia, the cooperation mechanism of Great Mekong Subregion, established in 1995, has undergone positive development and achieved gratifying results with the fruitful cooperation of the six countries including Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. The environment ministers meeting is one of the important activities under the framework of leaders meeting. It not only makes the leaders meeting rich in content, but also lays solid foundation of mutual trust for countries within the subregion to develop environmental cooperation.