ULAN BATOR, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Mongolian Foreign Minister Nyamtseren Enkhtaivan held talks on Tuesday, vowing to advance bilateral cooperation in fighting the COVID-19 epidemic and further promote the two countries' ties.

Wang said that since the novel coronavirus outbreak, China and Mongolia have helped each other and overcome the difficulties together.

Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga made a special visit to China at the most severe time of the epidemic in China, expressed support for China and donated 30,000 sheep to China, Wang said, adding that Mongolian people from all walks of life initiated fundraising activities for China.

The Chinese side also reciprocated, by sharing prevention and control experience and information with Mongolia without reservation, and providing medical supplies assistance, Wang said, noting that the relationship between the two countries has withstood the test of the epidemic outbreak and has been further improved in the joint fight against the epidemic.

"We are willing to work with Mongolia to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and push the China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level," he said.

The message of the visit to the outside world is that, first of all, China is willing to further strengthen cooperation in the fight against the epidemic with Mongolia, consolidate the good momentum of "zero infection" on the two sides, work together to deal with the preparation for the possible long-term presence of the epidemic, strengthen normalized joint prevention and joint control, make better use of the "green channel" for goods exchanges, accelerate the establishment of "fast channels" for personnel exchanges, and carry out vaccine and drug cooperation, Wang said. "The epidemic will eventually pass, and the China-Mongolia friendship will last forever."

Second, China will continue to support Mongolia's economic and social development and improvement of people's livelihood, and is willing to share development opportunities with Mongolia to achieve common prosperity. The advantages of both parties complement each other and the cooperation prospects are broad. The two countries must make up for the time lost due to the outbreak of the epidemic and promote the resumption of work and production of key projects as soon as possible, Wang noted.

During this visit, the two sides reached a consensus on extensive cooperation, and agreed to speed up the alignment of the joint construction of the Belt and Road and Mongolia's Prairie Road development initiative, actively promote sewage treatment plants, hydropower stations, transformation of shanty towns and other major projects that have been agreed and are under negotiation, expand the import of agricultural and animal husbandry products and coal from Mongolia, and further strengthen cooperation between ports and cross-border economic zones.

Third, the two sides should work together to ensure the long-term healthy and stable development of China-Mongolia relations. China and Mongolia are permanent neighbors and should also be permanent friends. This is the only right and the best choice for the two countries. The two sides should continue to strengthen political mutual trust, consolidate the political foundation of bilateral relations, in particular respect each other's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and refrain from interfering in each other's internal affairs. This is not only a political commitment when the two countries established diplomatic relations, but also a basic norm of international relations. It should become a "sacred needle" for the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations.

Wang emphasized that China and Mongolia are both developing countries and share extensive common interests in international and regional affairs. The two sides should strengthen their support and cooperation in the United Nations and other multilateral frameworks, and jointly send the positive note of opposing unilateralism, supporting multilateralism, opposing splitting and confrontation, and supporting win-win cooperation.

For his part, Enkhtaivan said that Mongolia attaches great importance to the development of relations with China and places cooperation with China as a priority in the country's foreign policy.

Since the outbreak of the epidemic, the two countries have maintained close, high-level communication, while political mutual trust has been solid, and mutually beneficial cooperation has been continuously deepened, said Enkhtaivan.

Saying that Wang is the first foreign minister to visit Mongolia since the outbreak, Enkhtaivan called the visit a vivid manifestation of the great importance China attaches to the Mongolia-China relations and the traditional friendship between the two neighbors.

Enkhtaivan expressed Mongolia's gratitude to China for its anti-epidemic supplies assistance, and willingness to continue to unite with China to fight the epidemic and expand cooperation in traditional Chinese medicine.

The establishment of a Green Gateway aimed at boosting trade and economic cooperation between Mongolia and China amid the COVID-19 epidemic has played an important role in restoring and expanding trade between the two countries, he said.

The Mongolian foreign minister said that Mongolia is willing to deepen cooperation with China in areas including culture, education, health and innovation, and intensify communication and coordination on the multilateral stage to promote more mutually beneficial and win-win results.

The two foreign ministers reiterated that China and Mongolia will respect each other's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and will not interfere in each other's internal affairs.

After the talks, the foreign ministers signed the revised Agreement on China-Mongolia Border Ports and Their Management System, the annual cooperation plan of the Chinese and Mongolian ministries of foreign affairs and other documents, and jointly met the press.