Chinese Vice Premier Meets Ethiopian President 　　Chinese Vice-Premier Qian Qichen said on June 16 that cooperation in the political and economic fields between China and Ethiopia has been fruitful since the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front came to power. 　　Qian made the remarks when he met with Ethiopian President Negasso Gidada in Johannesburg. 　　Qian said the state visit by Chinese President Jiang Zemin in 1996 gave fresh impetus to bilateral relations of the two countries, and that the Chinese government attaches great importance to developing friendly relations with Ethiopia and wishes to expand cooperation in various fields on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. 　　Negasso said China upholds justice in international affairs and adheres to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. China, therefore, is an important force to maintain world peace and stability, he noted. 　　The president said China's robust economic growth has also stimulated the economic growth of other countries. 　　Negasso said he is satisfied with the development of bilateral relations and that he hoped the two sides would make more efforts to fully tap the potential of bilateral cooperation. 　　Negasso also briefed Qian on the border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea. 　　Qian said the war has caused the loss of lives and severe material damage to both countries. Both Ethiopia and Eritrea face the task of developing the economy and uplifting people's living standards. He said China hopes the two sides could soon halt the military clashes and find a peaceful solution. 　　China supports the efforts of the Organization of African Unity in this regard and hopes that African countries could solve their problems by themselves, Qian said. 　　Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Wang Yingfan and Ambassador to South Africa Wang Xuexian were present at the meeting. 　　Both Qian and President Negasso are in South Africa for the inauguration of Thabo Mbeki as the new South African president.(Xinhua) WorldNews 1999-06-17 Page6 Full Story in Chinese