PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong wrapped up his official trip to China yesterday with a visit to the historic city of Xi'an in western Shaanxi province. Earlier, during the five-day visit, he held talks with top Chinese leaders in Beijing and attended the Asia-Europe Meeting, where the ongoing financial crisis topped the agenda.

On visiting Xi'an for the first time

'Each time I've been to China, it's to the coastal areas like Guangdong, Shanghai, and Tianjin. But I have not had many opportunities to go to the interior. And I know that one of China's growth emphasis is to 'Develop the West'. So I felt it was important for me to understand, to come to meet the people, and to have an exchange and feel the pulse of the city.'

On bilateral ties and meeting the Chinese leaders

'Our relations are in very good shape. The meetings I had were all good meetings, good exchanges. We understand what the Chinese preoccupations are, and we also appreciate the emphasis which the Chinese have given to developing their ties with Singapore across a wide range of areas.'

On the financial crisis and the Asem summit

'We had a good exchange of views, so I think there is a reasonable consensus on the challenges and what needs to be done. But how specifically to do it, that will have to be worked out by the finance ministers and the central bankers.

'Asia and Europe understand that we belong to one globalised world, we have to keep trade open, we have to keep on pushing for globalisation. We cannot close ourselves up. Asia has to be part of the solution to the problems.'