By Kay Scrimger
December 19, 2011

During the first half of December, Conference of Mayors President Los Angeles Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa led an eleven-day trade delegation to China, Japan, and South Korea.

The goal of this, his second trade mission to Asia, was to "continue to strengthen important relationships while working to increase investment, trade and tourism in L.A."

One of Villaraigosa's primary goals was to meet with the China Association of Mayors, with whom the Conference of Mayors has built a strong cooperative relationship since 1999 in order to bring U.S. and Chinese mayors closer together.

In his first stop, Beijing, the mayor signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the United States Conference of Mayors and the China Association of Mayors (CAM). Villaraigosa's counterpart in China is Beijing Mayor GUO Jinlong, President of CAM.

To date, six summits in both nations have brought together U.S. mayors and Chinese mayors to exchange information and share best practices on key urban issues. Dialogue at these meetings has highlighted common challenges and a variety of ways of meeting those challenges.

Signed December 5th, the MOU calls for the Conference of Mayors and CAM to continue to work together on building ties through striving for a better investment environment and creating more job opportunities in Chinese and U.S. cities

The Seventh Sino-U.S. Mayors Summit will be held in Los Angeles. Exact dates have not been set but the plan calls for it to occur by June, 2012.

A major goal of the summit will be to explore ways to improve the investment environment, streamline investment opportunities, and provide general support for and to stimulate more investment in Chinese and U.S. cities.

Participants in the summit will include not only mayors but also business representatives.

The Chinese Center for International Economic Exchange and the Paulson Institute have also expressed interest and support for increasing investment opportunities in each nation.

In addition to the signing ceremony, Villaraigosa met separately with Mayor Guo of Beijing. Traditionally the mayor of Beijing is the CAM President. The two emphasized the importance of past cooperation between U.S. and Chinese mayors and looked forward to the investment and job creation aims of the next summit.

In addition to Beijing, Villaraigosa visited Beijing, Chongqing, and Shanghai; Tokyo and Sendai in Japan; and Seoul in South Korea. His visit to Sendai focused on learning about how the region responded to the earthquake and tsunami.

Throughout his trip, the mayor spoke to business and trade groups, hosted receptions for customers of Los Angeles' port and airports, and met with business and political leaders.