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Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) smiles with Latvia's President of the Republic Andris Berzins (C) and and French President Francois Hollande during the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Milan October 16, 2014. [Photo/Agencies]
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MILAN - The tenth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) opened in Milan, Italy on Thursday under the theme of "Responsible Partnership for Growth and Security."
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said at the meeting that the two sides can expand cooperation in areas such as finance, narrowing development gap and coping with global issues.
The two-day summit is scheduled to formally accept Kazakhstan and Croatia as its members, making the ASEM a 53-member forum with enhanced influence.
The ASEM, founded in 1996, is a high-level and large-scale inter-governmental platform of dialogues and cooperation between the two continents.
