BEIJING, July 25 -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday congratulated Boris Johnson on his assuming office as British prime minister.

In his congratulatory message, Li said China-Britain relations have maintained a good momentum of growth in general in recent years, and the two sides have maintained frequent high-level exchanges and achieved fruitful results in cooperation in various fields.

Li appreciated the fact that Johnson was committed to deepening bilateral relations when he served as foreign secretary and mayor of London.

The Chinese government attaches great importance to the development of its relations with Britain, Li said, adding that on the basis of mutual respect and equality, he is willing to work together with Johnson to deepen political mutual trust, expand pragmatic cooperation in various fields, hold stable the steering wheel of the China-Britain relationship in its "Golden Era," and make contributions to safeguarding multilateralism and free trade as well as building an open world economy.