CCTV News: As the host of the Boao Forum for Asia, the progress of the construction of Hainan Free Trade Port has attracted much attention. During the 2025 Annual Meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia, the guests pointed out that after the closure of the customs, the freedom and convenience of trade and investment between Hainan Free Trade Port and other parts of the world will be further improved, and its ties with the super-large-scale market in mainland China will be closer.

In 2023, Hainan Free Trade Port jointly launched the "Global Free Trade Zone (Hong Kong) Partnership Initiative" with 25 domestic and foreign free trade zones (Hong Kong). At present, Hainan Free Trade Port has 38 international "circles of friends", covering Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America. Hainan Province is planning to work with global partners to promote soft connectivity of rules and mechanisms and hard connectivity of infrastructure.

Hainan Province Governor Liu Xiaoming said: "Strengthen the interconnection and interoperability of key areas such as transportation, logistics, information, communications, and energy, build a cross-regional multimodal transport system and intelligent logistics platform, improve the efficiency of cargo transportation, promote regional economic integration and the efficient flow of global resources."

In 2024, Hainan's import and export of goods increased by 20% year-on-year, and the import and export of services increased by 23.9% year-on-year. The actual scale of foreign investment and foreign investment ranks among the forefront of China. Experts pointed out that the Hainan closure operation will continue to promote China's institutional opening up and lead the development of regional free trade.

Chi Fulin, director of the China (Hainan) Institute of Reform and Development, said: "What does the closure operation mean? Higher level of opening up, faster core policies are implemented, and the full implementation of the "Hainan Free Trade Port Law of the People's Republic of China", liberalization of the first line and good management of the second line is not only the level of tariffs, but more importantly the arrangement of the free trade system."

With the rise of trade protectionism, global free trade is facing severe challenges. How to achieve transformation and development and promote trade integration is a major issue faced by the free trade zone (Hong Kong).

Long Yongtu, former deputy minister of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Affairs of China, said: "In the past, the World Trade Organization had an arbitration institution, but now the United States has paralyzed the arbitration institution of the World Trade Organization. It can only rely on negotiations between countries. If the negotiations are not good, it is a conflict, and if the conflict is not good, it is a trade war. So I think that an arbitration mechanism can be established in regional trade to resolve regional trade conflicts."

Samir, CEO of the World Free Zone Organization, said: "Hainan should diversify its economy. I heard that Hainan is focusing on five areas, such as aerospace, agriculture, etc. Hainan should develop service-oriented investment, and based on its existing foundation, selecting the right partners to succeed."

In the interview, representatives from many countries said that they should use openness to gather global development factors, cooperate to meet the challenges of the world's changing situation, and use mutual learning to enhance Asia's innovation and competitiveness. Everyone is also looking forward to seeing that the completion of Hainan Free Trade Port can promote the process and development of global free trade.