Leaders of China and Malaysia Tuesday expressed their satisfaction over the development of bilateral relations and projected hope for closer ties in the future.
During his meeting with visiting Malaysian King Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, President Jiang Zemin described the development of bilateral ties since the establishment of diplomatic relations 27 years ago as "steady and sound," according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman.
The Chinese president highlighted the frequent exchange of visits between the leaders of the two countries, saying that it has contributed to the increased understanding and friendship between the two peoples.
Despite the difference in traditions and political systems, Jiang expressed his confidence in the friendly ties with Malaysia.
Jiang's words were echoed by King Salahuddin, who said that with the joint efforts of the two governments and the peoples, co-operation between the two countries will achieve new progress in the new century.
China and Malaysia have conducted exchanges and co-operation in cultural, education, scientific and military fields. Official statistics from China indicate that bilateral trade jumped by more than 52 per cent in 2000 over the previous year to reach more than US$8 billion.
According to the spokesman, Jiang also spoke highly of the achievements made by Malaysia in resisting a financial crisis and in the full recovery and development of its economy.
The current six-day visit is the first to a country outside the Association of Southeast Asian Nations by King Salahuddin.
The on-going visit of the Malaysian King will add to the mutual understanding and friendship between the people in the two countries and promote their mutually-beneficial co-operation, Jiang was quoted as saying by the spokesman.
The Malaysian king and queen arrived in Beijing yesterday morning to kick off a six-day visit to China. The trip will also take the royal couple to Northwest China's city of Xi'an and the commercial hub of the country, Shanghai. King Salahuddin is scheduled to hold talks with Premier Zhu Rongji Wednesday.
(China Daily 04/25/2001)
