Chinese vice president visits Belarus to promote ties

Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan meets with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Monday May 28, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua]

Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan rounds off a visit to Belarus on Tuesday with a stronger consensus on further cementing bilateral ties and deepening mutually beneficial practical cooperation.

During his stay, Wang met with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and held talks with Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov, who held a welcoming ceremony for the visiting Chinese vice president.

When meeting with Lukashenko, Wang conveyed to Lukashenko Chinese President Xi Jinping's sincere greetings and best wishes, saying that Xi looks forward to his attendance at the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in China and meeting him again, which will give a new big boost to the development of China-Belarus relations.

Xi attaches great importance to the relationship between China and Belarus, said Wang, adding that guided by the two heads of state, bilateral relations have been running at high levels over recent years.

Wang noted that the two countries have forged a comprehensive strategic partnership featuring mutual trust and win-win cooperation, which has opened broad prospects for bilateral cooperation in various areas.

China and Belarus, he said, enjoy continuously strengthening political mutual trust, hold the same or similar stances on major global and regional affairs, and steadfastly support each other on issues related to their respective core interests and major concerns.

Beijing respects the development path Belarus has chosen in accordance with its national conditions, and is glad to witness the remarkable achievements Minsk has made in maintaining political stability and boosting socio-economic development under Lukashenko's wise leadership, he said, adding that China supports Belarus playing an important role in promoting regional security and stability.

Thanks to the two countries' joint efforts, bilateral win-win cooperation is growing steadily both in breadth and in depth, covering such areas as economy, security and people-to-people exchanges and expanding at both national and local levels, said Wang, adding that bilateral collaboration has further enriched the China-Belarus partnership.

The two sides, he suggested, should continue to strengthen political mutual trust and join hands to build a community with a shared future, and should also integrate their interests more tightly and dovetail their economic development plans more closely, so as to achieve common development and prosperity.

The China-Belarus industrial park, a special economic zone jointly developed by the two countries in the Minsk Region, is a key project personally promoted by the two presidents, and has so far made encouraging progress, he said, calling for concerted efforts to build it into a landmark cooperation project within the framework of the Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative.

China, he added, welcomes Belarus' participation in the China International Import Expo to be held later this year in Shanghai.

Regarding the SCO, Wang said China appreciates Belarus' involvement as an observer and will continue to support Minsk playing a constructive role in pushing forward the organization's development.

For his part, Lukashenko asked Wang to convey his sincere greetings and best wishes to Xi, saying he looks forward to attending the SCO summit and meeting the Chinese president once again.

The two countries enjoy a time-honored friendship, trust each other and treat each other equally, said the president, adding that Belarus is a strategic partner China can fully trust.

The Belarusian side, he said, highly appreciates and supports Xi's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind as well as the Xi-proposed B&R Initiative, and stands ready to join hands with China to align their development strategies and turn the China-Belarus industrial park into a pearl on the Silk Road Economic Belt, the overland part of the initiative.

Belarus is actively preparing for its participation in the upcoming import expo in China and is willing to step up cooperation with China within the SCO framework, he said.

During his talks with Kobyakov, Wang conveyed to the Belarusian prime minister Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's sincere greetings and best wishes, and pointed out that practical cooperation serves as the ballast of bilateral relations.

Noting that bilateral cooperation and exchanges in various areas have kept moving forward and borne rich fruit, he said the two sides should continue to implement the consensuses reached by the two presidents, give full play to such mechanisms as the intergovernmental cooperation committee, and jointly determine the priorities and key areas.

They need to expand two-way trade in a more balanced manner, enhance cooperation in investment, finance and innovation, and earnestly push forward the major projects so as to give play to their demonstration effect, he added.

In addition, the Chinese vice president called for more people-to-people and local-level exchanges, so as to deepen the mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples.

For his part, Kobyakov asked Wang to convey his sincere greetings and best wishes to the Chinese premier, and stressed that the two countries have huge potential in economic and trade cooperation.

Belarus, he said, is committed to deepening bilateral practical cooperation, joining China to boost two-way trade and improve its economic structure, and facilitating Chinese enterprises' investment in the country.

Wang arrived in Minsk on Sunday for the second leg of his first overseas trip as vice president. Earlier in the two-nation tour, he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and attended the 22nd St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in Russia's "northern capital."

During his stay in the Belarusian capital, he also visited Victory Square and laid a wreath at Victory Monument.