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Chinese state councilor meets South African president
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-09 03:47

L'AQUILA, Italy: Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo, who was to attend outreach session of the G8 Summit on behalf of Chinese President Hu Jintao, met here on Wednesday with Jacob Zuma, president of South Africa, calling for deepening cooperation between the two countries.

During the meeting, Dai conveyed President Hu's greetings and congratulations to Zuma on his victory in the general election, according to a press release issued by the Chinese delegation.

Dai said both China and South Africa are important developing countries, and deepening the bilateral strategic partnership is not only in the basic interest of both countries and both peoples, but also helpful to the substantial cooperation between China and Africa at large.

As the global financial crisis has crippled the world economy and exerted negative impact on the people's life, Dai called for further all-around cooperation between the two countries.

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According to Chinese diplomats, the state councilor offered a four-point proposal on boost bilateral ties: to conduct more political communication and exchange, to expand trade and deepen economic cooperation, to encourage more exchange of visits, and to enhance cooperation and coordination in international organizations as well as on multinational diplomatic occasions.

Zuma, on his part, said South Africa attaches importance to its ties with China, willing to coordinate more on international issues and deepen the friendly cooperation between the two countries.

Zuma also extended his thanks for China's aid to Africa, according to the press release.

On the international issues, Zuma said the international community should enhance cooperation to jointly address the global challenges like economic recession and climate change.