Xi's visits open new chapter of friendship, win-win cooperation for future

BANGKOK, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping's just-concluded official visits to Vietnam and Thailand proved to be a major diplomatic move meant to strengthen China's relations with countries in the neighboring region, a senior Chinese diplomat said Saturday.

The visits were of great significance to promoting and making closer China's relations of strategic partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and consolidating and developing China's good-neighborly foreign relations with the neighboring region, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun said.

Xi's visits have opened a new chapter for China's traditional friendship with Vietnam and Thailand and boosted mutual benefit and win-win cooperation oriented toward the future, Zhang said upon the conclusion of Xi's tour to the two Southeast Asian countries.

Aiming to strengthen the good-neighborly ties, enhance strategic mutual trust and advance pragmatic cooperation, Xi met with leaders of governments, parliaments and political parties of the two countries, and exchanged views with them on bilateral relations and regional and international issues of common concern in a candid and friendly atmosphere, Zhang said.

During his visits, Xi, together with Vietnamese and Thai leaders, jointly attended the signing ceremonies of bilateral cooperation documents in various fields, further deepening the bilateral pragmatic cooperation.

Xi also met with many friends and representatives of Chinese enterprises, students and embassy staff members in the two countries and encouraged them to contribute more to stronger friendship and cooperation between China and the two countries.

Zhang also said that both Vietnam and Thailand highly valued and warmly welcomed Xi's visits. Xi met with their top government and party leaders, which fully demonstrated their warm welcome to Xi's arrival and the traditional friendship between the peoples of the two countries.

CONSOLIDATING ! GOOD NEI GHBORLY TIES, ENHANCING POLITICAL MUTUAL TRUST

Vietnam and Thailand both are important neighboring countries of China. During the visits, Xi held in-depth exchange of views with leaders of the two countries on strengthening strategic communications and further advancing bilateral ties and reached important consensus with them.

During his stay in Vietnam, Xi held separate meetings with Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, and Le Hong Anh, a Politburo member and permanent member of the Secretariat of the CPV Central Committee, and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

Xi said that developing the friendly relations between China and Vietnam is a firm strategic policy of the Communist Party of China (CPC)and the Chinese government.

China is willing to work together with Vietnam to jointly implement the important consensus reached in October this year between General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Hu Jintao and CPV General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Xi said.

China stands ready to consolidate the traditional friendship, enhance political mutual trust, properly handle maritime disputes, and carry forward the China-Vietnam good neighborly ties from generation to generation, so as to ensure the long-term steady and sound development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, Xi added.

The Vietnamese side said that developing the friendly cooperation with China has always been the top priority of Vietnam's external relations.

Vietnam is willing to work together with China to implement their important consensus, strengthen high-level exchanges, enhance political mutual trust, deepen pragmatic cooperation, expand friendly exchanges, properly handle their disputes, and boost the steady and sound development of the ties between the two countries.

The two sides spoke highly of the important consensus on the Sout! h China Sea issue, which was reached during CPV General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's visit to China, and they agreed to work together to implement it, Zhang said.

Xi made the visit to Vietnam in his capacity as China's party and state leader, which has further strengthened the inter-party communications between the two countries, Zhang said.

During his visit to Thailand, Xi met with Thai Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Thai Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda, and Speaker of Thailand's House of Representatives Somsak Kiatsuranont.

Xi said that China attached great importance to developing its friendly ties with Thailand.

He added that China is willing to expand high-level communications with Thailand, deepen their strategic mutual trust, and jointly uplift their strategic cooperation to a new level.

Thai leaders spoke highly of the Thailand-China relations and expressed thanks for China's assistance and aid to the disaster areas affected by recent severe floods in Thailand.

They expressed their willingness to further strengthen communications with China and push forward the bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries.

CARRY FORWARD TRADITIONAL FRIENDSHIP, EXPAND PERSONNEL EXCHANGES

Xi highly valued the traditional friendship and personnel exchanges between China and the two Southeast Asian nations. He visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Ho Chi Minh's former residence in Vietnam, and met with Vietnamese youth. In Thailand, Xi donated tablet computers to students of a flood-battered school.

When meeting with more than 500 youths from China and Vietnam, Xi encouraged them to carry forward the traditional friendship between the two countries and to become an important force in promoting bilateral cooperation.

During his trip to Thailand, Xi said China and Thailand should continue to deepen cooperation in the areas of culture, language, tourism, and exchanges between the youths, and to increase p! ersonnel exchanges to improve mutual understanding.

WORK TO IMPROVE CHINA-ASEAN TIES

As the world is undergoing a period of major development, drastic transformations and re-adjustment, East Asia and ASEAN are playing a more important role, Xi said.

With Vietnam as the current coordinator country in the China-ASEAN relations and Thailand as the next one in 2012, it's significant for China to further intensify its relations with the two nations for closer China-ASEAN ties.

Xi said China supports Vietnam and Thailand in playing greater roles in international and regional affairs and will step up coordination and cooperation with them in jointly defending the interests of developing countries and achieving regional stability and sustainable development.

Xi pledged to increase China-ASEAN cooperation in economy, trade and infrastructure for mutual benefit.

Xi's visit has drawn great attention from regional and international media. which lauded the trip as being conducive to closer bilateral ties and regional cooperation and stability.

Hong Kong's media said Xi's visit to Vietnam aimed to strengthen bilateral ties and showed the two sides would deal with South China Sea issues through consultation.

Thai media said the first visit by a Chinese leader to Thailand since the new Thai government was formed in July showed that China attaches great importance to its ties with Thailand.

Japanese media said China aimed to strengthen its relations with neighboring countries and consolidate friendship.

Zhang said Xi's visit was a fruitful one, which has cemented China's friendly relations with its neighboring countries, enhanced mutual political trust, promoted cooperation and improved regional development. (Xinhua)