Chinese FM meets Afghan acting foreign minister in Beijing

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, welcomed Muttaqi's visit to China on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Afghanistan. He called the two countries traditional friendly neighbors that understand and support each other.

China respects Afghanistan's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the independent choices made by the Afghan people, Wang said, noting that China will, as always, support the government of Afghanistan in achieving long-term peace and stability in the country at an early date.

China stands ready to carry forward traditional friendship, enhance political mutual trust and deepen practical cooperation with the Afghan side, to bring more benefits to the two countries and the two peoples, and contribute to regional peace and stability, Wang added.

Wang said that China is willing to expand cooperation with Afghanistan in areas such as economy and trade, agriculture, energy and minerals, poverty reduction, disaster prevention and mitigation, talent cultivation, healthcare, law enforcement and security.

He said China will import more quality products from Afghanistan, and provide support and assistance within its capacity for Afghanistan's reconstruction and development as well as the improvement of people's lives.

Echoing Wang's remarks, Muttaqi expressed his gratitude to China for providing long-term valuable assistance to Afghanistan's national development and improvement of people's lives, and for upholding justice for Afghanistan in the international arena.

He said that the Afghan government values the traditional friendship between Afghanistan and China, places friendship with China in an important position in its foreign policy, and will continue to firmly abide by the one-China principle and oppose interference in China's internal affairs.

Muttaqi noted that the Afghan side is willing to deepen mutual trust with China and push for more positive achievements in their cooperation across various fields. The Afghan side attaches great importance to China's security concerns and will never allow any force to use Afghan territory to engage in activities that harm China.

Afghanistan is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in the security field, combat violent crimes, safeguard China's interests in Afghanistan, and jointly maintain regional security and stability, Muttaqi added. ■