Chinese President Xi, Zambia's Hichilema hold bilateral talks in Beijing

By James Kunda and Necva Tastan

LUSAKA, Zambia / ANKARA (AA) - Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday hosted Hakainde Hichilema, his counterpart from the Southern African country of Zambia, with the two leaders agreeing to upgrade bilateral ties between the two states.

A joint communique issued by the Zambian and Chinese governments said the talks in Beijing were held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere, and the two leaders had in-depth exchange of views on bilateral ties, Chinese-African relations, and international and regional issues of mutual interest.

"The meeting reached extensive and important consensus, with the two leaders agreeing to upgrade the bilateral ties between the two states for comprehensive, strategic and cooperative partnership," it said.

Hichilema has been in China on a weeklong state visit where he also met Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Zhao Leji, chairman of the standing committee of the National People’s Congress of China.

During the visit, set to end on Saturday, Hichilema has visited Shenzhen, Jiangxi and Fujian, where he inspected projects in the motor and tech industries.

Several memoranda of understanding were also signed between the two countries, including an agreement within the framework of China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the 21st century maritime silk road initiative signed in 2018.

The communique said the Chinese government is ready to support upgrading and renovating the Tanzania Zambia Railway and Zambia-China Mulungushi Textiles, in line with market and commercial principles.

It added that the two sides agreed that Hichilema’s visit was a complete success, of great significance to the development of Chinese-Zambian relations and the China-Africa community with a shared future.

- Cambodian visit

Separately, Xi also met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, on his first official trip abroad at his post, and they discussed security and development matters.

Xi said: "China firmly supports Cambodia in exploring a development path that suits its national conditions and is willing to maintain regular strategic communication with Cambodia and deepen the exchange of experience in state governance."

"China is willing to carry out regular law enforcement and security cooperation with Cambodia and continue to crack down on cross-border crimes such as online gambling and telecommunications fraud," he added.

Manet said: "Cambodia adheres to the one-China principle, firmly supports China in safeguarding its core interests, and supports the global development initiative, global security initiative, and global civilization initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping."

He also added that Cambodia will improve cooperation with Beijing in various areas, such as industry, agriculture, investment, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and “build a community of shared future between Cambodia and China to better benefit the two peoples."

Hun Manet is in Beijing on a three-day official visit which started Thursday, marking the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two nations.