Patrick Vallance, president of pharma R&D at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has praised Pudong's development strategies and said that he hoped to participate in more in the new area's development.

The remarks were made at a meeting with Weng Zuliang, Party secretary of Pudong New Area, Shanghai, on Sept 20, to discuss GSK's global development strategy and expansion plans in China.

Vallance said that GSK's R&D Center, located in Shanghai's Zhangjiang High Tech Park for more than a decade, has made a lot of achievements. He hoped that the company will develop better in combining R&D and commerce in China.

The president said that its pharma R&D team will remain in Zhangjiang and will expand in the next two years, although the company announced to move its nervous system drug R&D center in Zhangjiang to the United States in August.

Weng Zuliang thanked GSK for its contributions to Pudong's economic development and considered the development of enterprises and the region is interdependent.

Weng stated that Pudong is working on creating a legal, international, and convenient business environment and providing better services, making it easier for companies, particularly multinationals, to develop in China.

The Party chief also showed understanding of GSK's business changes and vowed to continue to support the company's development in Pudong.

GSK, headquartered in Brentford, London, is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies. Its Zhangjiang R&D center was established in 2007, which used to be the largest R&D center launched by multinationals in China. The center focuses on the R&D of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and other diseases.

GSK, a leading UK-based pharmaceutical company, has set up a R&D center in Zhangjiang High Tech Park in Shanghai in 2007. [Photo provided chinadaily.com.cn]