Chinese FM Meets Three European CounterpartsChinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan met Saturday with his counterparts from the Netherlands, Finland and Austria on separate occasions, who attended the third Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Foreign Ministers' Meeting, which concluded in Beijing Friday.The foreign ministers from the European countries thanked the Chinese side for its efforts to make the ASEM Foreign Ministers' Meeting a success. Meeting with Foreign Minister of the Netherlands Jozias Van Aartsen, Tang said that in recent years Sino-Netherlands friendly relations have kept developing and their cooperation in various fields has scored remarkable achievements. The two sides should continue to tap the potential to promote their relations to a higher level, Tang said. Tang welcomed Van Aartsen to pay an official visit to China later this year, and Van Aartsen expressed his gratitude for the invitation. Van Aartsen said Asian and European countries are playing an increasingly important role in the international political and economic arenas, and it is important for them to strengthen contacts. He added that the Netherlands government attaches importance to relations with China, and is ready to continue to promote bilateral relations. During his meeting with Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, Tang said that Finland is an important country in Europe, and the two countries have always enjoyed very good relations. China is willing to join efforts with Finland to further develop the two countries' relations, Tang said. Tuomioja said the exchange of visits in various fields between Finland and China has been frequent, and bilateral trade volume has increased rapidly. Finland is ready to work with China to further the two countries' cooperation, Tuomioja said. Tuomioja said that Finland supports China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) at an early date. Meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Tang expressed satisfaction with the development of Sino-Austrian relations since the two countries established diplomatic ties 30 years ago. He said China has always valued its relations with Austria, and hopes that Sino-Austrian friendly cooperation would be enhanced in the new century. Waldner spoke highly of China's role in international affairs, and expressed hope to further the cooperation with China in the economic and trade, cultural and environmental protection fields. Prior to the meeting, the two foreign ministers attended a ceremony to issue an envelope marking the 30th anniversary of Sino- Austrian diplomatic relations. |
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