China, Tunisia sign new agreements on health care cooperation

TUNIS, April 28 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday signed with Tunisia two agreements on continuing to dispatch Chinese medical teams to Tunisia and equipping a China-built hospital in southeastern Tunisia's Sfax Province.

The two deals were signed at the headquarters of the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs between Tunisian Minister of Foreign Affairs Othman Jerandi and Chinese Ambassador to Tunisia Zhang Jianguo.

Zhang said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Tunisia 58 years ago, the two countries have always helped each other, treated each other as equals, and supported each other on issues concerning each other's fundamental and major interests.

He noted that since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, China has provided more than 2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines and large amounts of medical supplies to Tunisia.

The China-built hospital in Sfax has greatly eased the local pressure in fighting the pandemic, said Zhang, adding that Chinese medical experts have been fighting side by side with their Tunisian counterparts to provide professional medical services to the local people.

For his part, Jerandi thanked the Chinese government for its long-term help and support in the field of health care.

The Chinese medical team's working style is excellent and their skills are superb, said the Tunisian top diplomat.

He praised the Chinese experts for having made great contributions to improving the medical treatment in Tunisia for the past 48 years.

Tunisia is willing to work with China to continue enhancing bilateral exchanges and cooperation in various fields, including medical and health care, so as to elevate the bilateral relations to a higher level, Jerandi said.