Slovenian president meets with senior Chinese diplomat on bilateral ties

LJUBLJANA, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Slovenian President Borut Pahor met with visiting senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi here on Wednesday.

Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings to Pahor.

Yang said China-Slovenia relations have witnessed steady and healthy development, with close exchanges between the two peoples and the scale of trade and investment continuing to expand. Against the backdrop of the pandemic, the two countries have maintained a positive momentum of cooperation and exchanges.

China welcomes Slovenian companies to actively explore its market, and is willing to import more high-quality products from Slovenia, he noted.

Next year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries. Yang said the two sides should take it as an opportunity to seek greater strategic alignment, expand cooperation in areas such as green development, innovation, medicine and infrastructure, while implementing the results from the China-Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) Summit to promote bilateral relations to a new level.

Yang said China is committed to maintaining peace, promoting development, and actively building a community with a shared future for mankind. China and the European Union (EU) should firmly grasp the overall direction of the development of bilateral relations from a strategic perspective to ensure that they continue to move forward along the right track.

Pahor asked Yang to convey his sincere greetings to President Xi. He spoke highly of China's achievements in reform and opening up as well as the important role it plays in international affairs.

The friendship between the two peoples is profound, and there is solid foundation for bilateral relations with multilateralism as their shared idea, Pahor noted.

Slovenia adheres to the one-China policy and is willing to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with China, said the president.

Slovenia will assume the presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of 2021. Pahor said Slovenia is willing to play a positive role in promoting EU-China relations and cooperation between CEEC and China.

Yang also met with Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Matej Tonin on Wednesday, exchanging views on bilateral ties and issues of mutual interest.