BEIJING: One day after meeting and having talks with visiting Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in Beijing on Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah in Beijing on Thursday, continuing his busy schedule after the Spring Festival holidays.
When meeting with Paetongtarn who is paying an official visit to China from February 5 to 8, Xi said that this year marks the 50th anniversary of China-Thailand diplomatic relations as well as the “Golden Jubilee of China-Thailand Friendship.” The two sides should build on past achievements and work together to advance the building of the China-Thailand community with a shared future to deliver more benefits to the two peoples, the region and the world at large, according to Xinhua.
In the face of profound changes unseen in a century, China and Thailand should consolidate strategic mutual trust, firmly support each other, and respond to uncertainties in the external environment with the stability and certainty of China-Thailand relations, Xi said.
Paetongtarn said she is delighted to visit China at a time when the two countries are celebrating the “golden jubilee” of their friendship. Thailand and China have forged a special friendly and cooperative relationship over the past five decades.
Calling China a responsible major country in international affairs that firmly safeguards the interests of developing nations, Paetongtarn said Thailand is willing to strengthen coordination and collaboration with China to address global challenges.
While meeting with Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal who is paying a state visit to China from February 5 to 7, President Xi said that since the establishment of diplomatic ties more than 30 years ago, the two countries have continuously deepened political mutual trust, actively aligned development strategies, and achieved fruitful results in practical cooperation in various fields, Xinhua reported.
The two countries have also maintained good coordination in international and regional affairs, set an example of relationship between countries of different sizes, which features equality and mutual benefit, and made positive contributions to regional peace, stability, development and prosperity, he added.
Xi said the joint building of a China-Brunei community with a shared future conforms to the trend of the times, serves the fundamental interests of the two countries and two peoples, and opens a new chapter in bilateral relations.
Hassanal spoke highly of China’s remarkable achievements in maintaining sustained and rapid economic growth and lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty.
He said the three major global initiatives proposed by China are playing a key role in promoting world peace, stability and development, which demonstrates China’s sense of responsibility as a major country.
The visits of the leaders from Thailand and Brunei to China during the Spring Festival are as natural as relatives paying each other visits, and are a diplomatic gesture that reflects warmth and closeness of ties, Zhou Shixin, director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, told the Global Times on Thursday.
Such visits will further promote bilateral ties, and both China-Thailand and China-Brunei relations reflect China’s commitment to fostering friendly and cooperative ties with ASEAN countries, highlighting its willingness to build strong partnerships with all ASEAN members, said Zhou.
President Xi will attend the opening ceremony of the 9th Asian Winter Games on Friday in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province. He will also host a welcome banquet for visiting foreign leaders attending the opening ceremony, including Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and National Assembly Speaker of the Republic of Korea Woo Won-shik, according to Xinhua.
