Li Changchun (1st L, on the carpet), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is welcomed by Estonian officials upon his arrival in Tallinn, capital of the Republic of Estonia on Sept. 21, 2010. Li started his official goodwill visit to the country on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Ma Zhancheng)
TALLINN, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Li Changchun, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met here Tuesday with Estonian parliament speaker and prime minister on bilateral relations.
Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, arrived in the Estonian capital of Tallinn earlier in the day for a three-day official goodwill visit to the Baltic Sea country.
While meeting with Estonian Parliament Speaker Ene Ergma, Li said China would work to further boost its overall relations with Estonia.
"China pays a lot of attention to its relationship with Estonia and appreciates Estonia's support for the one-China policy and China's other core interests," he said.
He added China would work to further boost its political relations with Estonia and to expand pragmatic bilateral cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and common interest with the aim of developing the friendly bilateral ties between the two countries in an all-around way.
Li noted parliamentary and party-to-party exchanges are a major part of China-Estonian relationship.
The CPC has established friendly ties with all major political parties in Estonia, he said, hoping such exchanges can lay a solid foundation for the overall bilateral relationship.
Ergma, for her part, said Estonia and China have maintained good relations and bilateral cooperation has been constantly deepened under the principle of equality and mutual benefits.
Estonia hopes to further strengthen exchanges with China in economic, trade and cultural areas, she said.
Particularly, Estonia hopes China can use the port of Tallinn as an important connecting point of the East-West maritime transportation route as part of efforts to expand bilateral cooperation on ports, according to her.
Later Tuesday, Li also met with Estonian Prime Minister Adrus Ansip who is also head of Estonia's Reform Party.
Li said China values its relationship with Estonia very much and regards it as an important partner in the Baltic Sea region.
"Under the current circumstances, China hopes to further strengthen political exchanges with Estonia, expand economic and trade cooperation, and deepen people-to-people interactions," he said.
China encourages Chinese companies to invest in Estonia, especially on infrastructure projects such as port construction, he added.
On party-to-party exchanges, Li said such interactions serve as an important channel for countries to deepen understanding of each other and to promote friendship and cooperation.
The CPC would like to strengthen exchanges with all friendly Estonian political parties, including the Reform Party, to boost mutual understanding and friendship, he added.
Li congratulated Estonia on its effective handling of the adverse effects of the global financial crisis. China also wants to deepen its cooperation with Estonian within the framework of European Union (EU), according to him.
Estonian joined the EU in 2004 and is expected to be a member of the Euro zone in 2011.
Ansip congratulated China for successfully hosting the 2010 Shanghai World Expo and thought highly of the first-ever China- Europe High-Level Political Party Forum held in Beijing in May.
Estonia appreciates China's efforts to stress the principle that all countries, no matter big or small, should be treated as equals, he said, adding that this principle has been observed well in Estonia-China relations.
The Estonian leader also said his country views the rapid economic and social development in China as a major opportunity and hopes to expand and deepen bilateral pragmatic cooperation.
He said Estonia supports a healthy EU-China relationship and would like to play a positive role in this regard.
He reiterated Estonia's support for China on its core interests. Estonia is the first leg of Li's four-nation trip which will also take him to Montenegro, Ireland and Iran.
Source: Xinhua
Related News
Photos
More>>
trade
- China Vows to Work with DPRK's New Leadership to Boost Ties
- Chinese, Italian Leaders Agree to Expand All-round Cooperation
- Chinese Premier Arrives in Turkey for Official Visit
- China, Turkey Issue Joint Declaration on Establishing Strategic Relationship of
- Chinese Premier Meets with German Chancellor
market
finance
- China, ROK Vow to Enhance Cooperation for Fruitful G20 Summit
- China, South Africa Seek Stronger Legislative Ties
- China, Africa Celebrate 10th Anniversary of Cooperation Forum
- Senior Chinese Military Officers, DPRK Leaders Watch Performance to Mark
- Senior CPC Leader Inspects Southeast Province, Urges Increased Development