President Jiang Meets With Nelson MandelaVisiting Chinese President Jiang Zemin expressed his satisfaction Tuesday with the smooth development of the Sino-South African ties during his meeting with Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa.Jiang told Mandela that the Pretoria Declaration on the Sino-South Africa Partnership and other cooperative documents signed on Tuesday plus the bilateral agreements reached before have helped to set up the fundamental framework of the bilateral cooperation. The two countries should spare no efforts to push the bilateral cooperation to a new high, Jiang said. He said that this is his third Africa tour, and each time he came here, he could feel the hospitality of the African people. Although China is far from Africa geographically, the two sides are on intimate terms because "we have the similar historical experiences and confront with common tasks." Mandela extended his warm welcome to Jiang, saying that Jiang's visit to Africa is very important because furthering the relations between Africa and China is of significant importance. He said that the Pretoria declaration on the partnership between China and South Africa will promote the development of the bilateral relations and is in the interest of the peoples of the two countries. |
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