Xi reaches out to two partners
President congratulates new UAE leader, celebrates 30 years of diplomatic ties with Croatia
President Xi Jinping sent messages of congratulation to the new president of the United Arab Emirates and to the president of Croatia, which has just celebrated 30 years of diplomatic ties with China.
Xi on May 14 congratulated Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on his ascension to the UAE presidency, saying he would like to work with the new president of the Arab nation to intensify their two countries’ comprehensive strategic partnership.
In his message to the new president, Xi said that since the two countries established diplomatic relations, their bilateral ties have kept developing in an all-around way, according to a news statement released on May 15.
The two countries have supported each other on the issues related to their own core interests and major concerns, with fruitful achievements in pragmatic cooperation in various fields, Xi said.
They have worked together to combat COVID-19 with significant results, and their friendship has intensified, he added.
Noting that he attaches great importance to the development of China-UAE relations, Xi said he is willing to work along with the new president of the UAE to deepen the nations’ comprehensive strategic partnership to benefit the two countries and their people.
Sheikh Mohamed, 61, became the new president of the UAE on May 14 after his brother, President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, passed away on May 13.
Sheikh Khalifa, who died at the age of 73, was the second president of the UAE and the 16th ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. He first assumed the federal constitutional authority as president of the UAE and became ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in November 2004, succeeding his late father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
Also on May 14, Xi sent a message of condolence to the UAE’s new president, mourning the passing of Sheikh Khalifa and extending his sincere sympathies to the relatives of the late president and the people of the UAE on behalf of the Chinese government and people and in his own name.
President Xi and his counterpart of the Republic of Croatia, Zoran Milanovic, exchanged congratulatory messages on May 13 on the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In his message, Xi pointed out that since the establishment of diplomatic ties, China and Croatia have always respected each other and treated each other as equals, adding that bilateral relations have withstood the test of international vicissitudes.
Thanks to the concerted efforts of both sides, China and Croatia have enjoyed solid political mutual trust and achieved positive results in their cooperation in jointly building the Belt and Road, bringing benefits to the people of the two countries, he said.
In the face of the challenges caused by COVID-19, China and Croatia have joined hands to fight the pandemic and written a new story of bilateral friendship, Xi added.
Noting that he attaches great importance to the development of the bilateral ties, Xi said he is ready to work with President Milanovic to take the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties as an opportunity to consolidate political mutual trust between the two countries, strengthen the alignment of development strategies, and jointly pilot bilateral relations for greater development, so as to benefit the two countries and their people.
Milanovic said that since Croatia and China established diplomatic relations, mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in various fields has achieved remarkable results.
He added that he believed the two sides will continue to work together to deepen partnership, expand cooperation areas and push the relations between the two countries to constantly achieve new results.
Also on May 13, China’s Premier Li Keqiang and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic exchanged congratulatory messages.
Li, in his message, said practical cooperation between China and Croatia has achieved fruitful progress, and such mutually beneficial projects as the Peljesac Bridge and the Senj Wind Farm have set fine examples for cooperation between China and Croatia, as well as between China and Europe.