China's top legislator holds talks with president of Timor-Leste's national parliament

BEIJING -- China's top legislator Zhao Leji on Friday held talks with Maria Fernanda Lay, president of the National Parliament of Timor-Leste, who is in China for a visit and the commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

Zhao, chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, said China is willing to work with Timor-Leste to accelerate the development of bilateral relations toward the goal of building a community with a shared future, and to bring more benefits to the two peoples.

China firmly supports Timor-Leste in following a development path suited to its own national conditions while safeguarding its national sovereignty, security and development interests, Zhao said.

He called on both sides to consolidate the foundation of political mutual trust, maintain bilateral relations with high-level strategic mutual trust, expand the space for mutually beneficial cooperation, and implement the plan for the Belt and Road cooperation.

Noting that the NPC of China and the National Parliament of Timor-Leste have maintained friendly exchanges for a long time, Zhao said the NPC is willing to further enhance exchanges and cooperation among senior members of the legislative bodies and lawmakers of the two countries, deepen experience sharing on topics such as state governance, legislation and supervision, and strengthen coordination within multilateral frameworks to present a common voice of the Global South.

Maria Fernanda Lay expressed gratitude to China for its long-term, significant assistance to and support for Timor-Leste to become a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

She said Timor-Leste unwaveringly adheres to the one-China principle and hopes to expand cooperation with China in areas such as infrastructure, scientific and technological innovation, renewable energy, agriculture and food security, special economic zone construction, and people-to-people and cultural exchanges.