Chinese Premier Meets with Irish Prime MinisterChinese Premier Zhu Rongji met with Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern Saturday in Seoul, expressing satisfaction with the development of Sino-Irish ties.While meeting Ahern on the sideline of the third Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) held in Seoul, Zhu said the Sino-Irish ties have rapidly developed since the two nations established diplomatic ties in 1979. China appreciated the facts that Ireland has been adhering to its position of One China, definitely backing China to realize national reunification through the policy of "One China, Two systems" and China's entry into the World Trade Organization, said Zhu. He said China is willing to make joint efforts with Ireland to actively develop friendly cooperation in all fields and to strengthen coordination and cooperation in international affairs. Ahern said he is satisfied with the rapid development of the relations between the two countries. Ireland will continue to stick to its "One China" policy, he noted. He said that with the exchange of visits by the two countries' high-rank officials in recent years, bilateral relations have been substantially promoted. Expressing thanks for China's attaching importance to developing cooperation with Ireland in trade and high-tech areas, the prime minister said his nation will strengthen cooperation with China in international affairs. The two leaders came to Seoul to attend the two-day third ASEM meeting which closed Saturday afternoon. Leaders from 10 Asian and 15 European states and the European Union attended the meeting. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |