China willing to promote strategic cooperative partnership with Sri Lanka: Chinese FM

KUALA LUMPUR - China is willing to work with Sri Lanka to promote a strategic cooperative partnership based on sincere mutual assistance and a lasting friendship, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Saturday when meeting his Sri Lankan counterpart Vijitha Herath.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China and Sri Lanka have a traditional friendship. The two heads of state held fruitful talks and reached an important consensus on deepening bilateral strategic cooperative partnership and jointly building a China-Sri Lanka community with a shared future, which pointed out the direction and provided guidance for the development of bilateral relations.

Wang pointed out that China is a reliable partner of Sri Lanka, and the two sides should deepen high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and practical cooperation in various fields.

The two sides should work together to effectively implement the two flagship projects of the Colombo Port City and the Hambantota Port, accelerate negotiations for China-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement, and create new growths for cooperation in such areas as green energy, digital economy, modern agriculture, and marine economy, Wang said.

He pointed out that China-Sri Lanka maritime cooperation is mutually beneficial, not aimed at third parties, and should not be interfered by third parties.

China is willing to strengthen coordination with Sri Lanka in such platforms as the ASEAN Regional Forum to jointly maintain stability and development in the region, he noted, adding the so-called "Indo-Pacific Strategy" provokes bloc confrontation and coerces parties to take sides, which is not in line with the trend of the time and will not receive support from regional countries.

Herath, for his part, said that Sri Lanka attaches great importance to its relations with China and firmly adheres to the one-China principle. Sri Lanka thanks China for its firm support for Sri Lanka in safeguarding its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and for its timely assistance during difficulties.

Sri Lanka-China cooperation has brought great benefits to the Sri Lankan people and has effectively promoted the overall development and connectivity of the region, said Herath, adding that Sri Lanka is willing to work with China to implement the consensus reached by the two heads of state, strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, including the economy, trade, investment, infrastructure, and maritime affairs, and further deepen the strategic cooperative partnership.