Chinese President Hu Jintao on Sunday exchanged congratulatory messages with his Maldivian counterpart Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In his message, Hu said over the past 40 years, friendly relations between China and Maldives have moved forward steadily. China-Maldives relations have become the model of friendship between a big country and a small one.
China stands ready to work with Maldives to promote the friendship between the two peoples to a higher level, Hu said.
For his part, Waheed said Maldives highly values the profound traditional friendship with China, and remains grateful for China's assistance to its development.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Sunday also exchanged congratulatory messages with his Maldivian counterpart Abdul Samad Abdulla.
