China Daily

Nations urged to safeguard intl fairness

Xi, leaders of Burundi, Sri Lanka discuss supporting each others’ core interests

- By CAO DESHENG caodesheng@chinadaily.com.cn

China stands ready to work with Burundi and Sri Lanka to support each other on each others’ core interests, jointly uphold internatio­nal fairness and justice and safeguard the interests of developing countries, President Xi Jinping said on Monday.

Xi made the remark in separate telephone conversati­ons with Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimi­ye and Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

While talking with Ndayishimi­ye, Xi hailed the high-level developmen­t of bilateral ties and said the two countries have built solid political trust with fruitful cooperatio­n in various fields and close coordinati­on in internatio­nal affairs.

The China-Burundi relationsh­ip has been an example of South-South cooperatio­n, he said, adding that their mutual support and assistance in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic have strengthen­ed their friendship.

Both countries should strengthen solidarity and cooperatio­n, uphold independen­ce and self-reliance and oppose external interferen­ce, Xi said.

He called on the two countries to strengthen exchanges in governance experience and the synergy of their developmen­t strategies to realize higher-level, mutually beneficial cooperatio­n and shared developmen­t.

China supports Burundi’s socioecono­mic developmen­t and remains committed to advancing cooperatio­n in the fields of infrastruc­ture and agricultur­e, he said.

Ndayishimi­ye expressed congratula­tions on the centenary of the Communist Party of China and highly commended the Party’s achievemen­ts in fighting poverty and the pandemic.

Calling Burundi and China good friends and brothers, he said his country firmly supports China’s position on the Taiwan question and the issues related to Xinjiang and the South China Sea, and supports China’s top legislatur­e in adopting the decision on improving the electoral system of the Hong Kong Special Administra­tive Region.

During his conversati­on with his Sri Lankan counterpar­t, Xi said China considers relations with Sri Lanka greatly important and stands ready to work with it to produce good planning for the strategic direction of the countries’ relationsh­ip.

The country is willing to steadily advance bilateral cooperatio­n on key projects and promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperatio­n so as to provide momentum for Sri Lanka’s economic recovery and sustainabl­e developmen­t, Xi said.

The Sri Lankan president highly praised the historic achievemen­ts of the CPC and congratula­ted the Party on the centenary of its founding.

He thanked China for its valuable support of his country, and he said Sri Lanka remains committed to strengthen­ing coordinati­on with China and resolutely supporting each other’s position on their core interests.

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