Leaders hail new cooperation

President Hu Jintao pledged to further the China-Denmark comprehensive strategic partnership, and said he believed that Europe would overcome the current debt crisis during his meeting with Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt in Copenhagen on Saturday.

Hu told the Danish prime minister that his visit to Denmark, the first by a Chinese head of state since the two countries established diplomatic ties 62 years ago, was "an embodiment of the high attention we attach to China-Denmark relations".

President Hu Jintao shakes hands with Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt in Copenhagen on Saturday. [Photo/Agencies]

Hu said China and Denmark, with their comprehensive strategic partnership, have seen an ever stronger political mutual trust, fruitful economic and trade cooperation, as well as close exchanges in the cultural, technological and educational sectors, and have maintained good communication and coordination in the United Nations and other multilateral bodies on international affairs.

The Chinese president said the smooth development of China-Denmark relations has proved that as long as the two countries treat each other as equals on the basis of mutual respect and win-win results, and respect their core interests, major concerns and the choice of their social systems and development paths, they could enjoy a long-term, sound and steady development of bilateral ties.

China believes that Europe has the wisdom and ability to overcome temporary difficulties and achieve economic recovery and growth, Hu said.

China will continue to work together with international community to help European countries to solve debt problems, he added.

Hu said he hopes that Denmark, an important member of the European Union, will play an active role in boosting Chinese relations with the continent.

Thorning-Schmidt said the EU appreciates China for its efforts together with that of the international community to confront the debt crisis.

She added that Denmark will continue to work on developing an even closer cooperative partnership between the EU and China.

The two leaders' schedule included a signing ceremony of 11 cooperation documents in such areas as energy, culture, trade and investment.

The documents also include the memorandum of understanding on establishing a China-Denmark renewable energy partnership.

"China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Denmark on important global issues such as climate change and development aid," Hu said.

Thorning-Schmidt said Hu's visit is another milestone in Sino-Danish relations, laying a solid foundation for the long-term.

The prime minister noted that despite the unstable world economy, China has maintained its economic growth momentum, which is important not only to Denmark, but also the whole world.

Denmark is a world leader in wind energy, meeting roughly a quarter of its electricity needs with wind. It is the home to the world's biggest wind turbine manufacturer.

According to an energy plan adopted by Denmark this year, wind power is expected to account for half of the country's electricity demand by 2020, with renewable energy accounting for about 35 percent of total energy demand.

Meeting the queen

The Danish royal couple of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Consort Henrik threw a lavish reception for Hu and his wife, Liu Yongqing, on Friday evening, attended by hundreds of celebrities in the country.

Hu said he appreciated the efforts that the queen and her family had made for China-Denmark relations.

Denmark was one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China after it was founded in 1949. The royal couple paid a visit to China in 1979, the queen becoming the first leader from a Nordic country to visit the nation.

Hu on Friday also joined Queen Margrethe II on the royal yacht Dannebrog to tour the Copenhagen harbor, which features a variety of green developments.

From Denmark, Hu travelled on Saturday to Los Cabos, Mexico, for a G20 summit, which will address pressing issues affecting global economic recovery.

Xinhua contributed to this story.

wujiao@chinadaily.com.cn