Top legislators from China and Australia have expressed their satisfaction with the development of relations of their countries.

At a meeting with Speaker of House of Representatives David Hawker here on Tuesday, Sheng Huaren, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), said the overall Sino-Australian relationship is assuming a sound development trend, which is marked by a deepened economic and trade cooperation.

Sheng, who is on a six-day visit to Australia at the invitation of the House, is attending an exchange conference under a bilateral parliamentary mechanism scheduled on Wednesday.

The NPC and the House of Representatives signed a memorandum of understanding last August to set up the exchange mechanism, a move Sheng described as marking a new era of parliamentary exchange between the two countries.

On the Taiwan issue, Sheng reiterated the fundamental principle of "peaceful reunification and one country, two systems," and zero tolerance towards "Taiwan's independence."

He expressed the hope that the Australian side will continue to support China's cause of peaceful reunification and maintain peace and stability in the region together with China.

Echoing Sheng's remarks on bilateral relations, Hawker pointed out that the Australian-Chinese relations are at their best time since the diplomatic relations were established 35 years ago.

He said the exchange mechanism will help parliamentarians of the two countries forge better understanding and friendship between them.

Hawker told the Chinese delegation that both the Australian government and the parliament will stick to the one China policy and allow no changes to it.

(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2007)