China's Wen attends regional summit

VIENTIANE, Laos, March 29 (UPI) -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is making a working visit to Laos to attend the third Greater Mekong Subregion Summit.

Leaders from the Asian group's members -- Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar and China – will meet Monday in the Laotian capital Vientiane to, among other things, work on economic development and environmental cooperation in the region, Xinhua reported Saturday.

The group's leaders also will meet with representatives from the Asian Development Bank at the two-day, triennial meeting, the state-run Chinese news service said.

Wen is expected to deliver a keynote speech on China's views and proposals on boosting the group's cooperation and its future development. The theme of the meeting is to "Enhance Competitiveness Through Greater Connectivity"

The summit was established in 1992 to promote economic and social development and cooperation within the six Mekong countries.