Thirty years ago today, on December 6, 1995 (October 15, 1995, the lunar calendar), China, Russia, Korea and Mongolia signed the Tumen River Area Development Agreement. On December 6, 1995, representatives of China, Russia, North Korea, South Korea and Mongolia formally signed three agreements on the development of the Tumen River area at the United Nations Headquarters. The three agreements are: the "Agreement on the Establishment of the Tumen River Economic Development Zone and the Northeast Asia Development Consultative Committee" signed by representatives of the five countries, and the "Memorandum of Understanding on the Tumen River Region Economic Development Zone and the Northeast Asia Environment"; and the "Agreement on the Establishment of the Tumen River Area Development Coordination Committee" signed by representatives of China, North Korea and Russia. This marks a new stage in the international cooperation plan to jointly develop the Tumen River area. The mixed secretariat of the Coordination Committee and the Consultative Committee established under the above-mentioned agreement will be located in Beijing. At the signing ceremony, United Nations Development Program Administrator Spees delivered a speech congratulating the signing of the three agreements. He said that UNDP will continue to actively support this international cooperation project to make it a model of sustainable development. Ambassador Qin Huasun, Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, said in his speech that the three agreements confirm the political commitment of Northeast Asian countries to expand opening up and strengthen cooperation on the basis of mutual respect for national sovereignty and independence, equality, mutual benefit, and good neighborliness and friendship. The signing of the agreement marked the beginning of a new stage of cooperation among these countries. Representatives of Russia, North Korea, South Korea and Mongolia also spoke at the signing ceremony. They all expressed that they would actively participate in international cooperation to jointly develop the Tumen River area. The Tumen River area, located on the border of China, Russia and North Korea, is located in the center of Northeast Asia. It is rich in natural resources, superior geographical location, and has great development potential. The document signed today marks that cooperative development in the region has shifted from the research and demonstration stage to the implementation stage focusing on investment and trade.