Xi meets Chilean, Indonesian and South Korean Presidents on APEC sidelines

Xi meets Chilean president, pledges closer ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with his Chilean counterpart Sebastian Pinera in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua]

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with his Chilean counterpart Sebastian Pinera on Saturday, vowing to lift bilateral ties to a new height.

The meeting occurred on the sidelines of the ongoing Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, held in Papua New Guinea's capital city of Port Moresby.

Chile was the first South American country to establish diplomatic ties with China, and the bilateral ties have long taken a lead among China-Latin America relations, said Xi, hoping bilateral cooperation could enter a new stage under current circumstances.

Xi extended congratulations to Pinera on his second term as Chilean president, saying China-Chile comprehensive strategic partnership, under the guidance of the two heads of state, would open up a new chapter, achieve new development and make more contributions to overall China-Latin America cooperation.

China and Chile have already signed the inter-governmental agreement on the Belt and Road Initiative, and the next move in this regard is to define key areas and projects and strive for early harvest, said the Chinese president.

Xi stressed the role of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, adding that the two sides should take the opportunity of upgrading of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to expand the scale of trade, optimize trade structure, deepen investment cooperation, and press ahead major interconnectivity projects.

Xi proposed holding a series of celebrations as the year of 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of establishment of China-Chile diplomatic relationship.

China is willing to step up cooperation with Chile in areas like technology and Antarctic affairs, he added.

China supports Chile hosting APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting next year, and will work jointly with Chile to push forward the construction of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific, said Xi.

Pinera highlighted the solid foundation and robust development of Chile-China relations, saying that China is Chile's biggest trade partner and major investment source country, and that the FTA upgrading provided a broader prospect for further cooperation.

Chile will work with China to enhance high-level exchanges, deepen cooperation in areas like trade, investment, infrastructure, technology, and join hands to promote the Belt and Road construction, uphold free trade and build an open world economy, said Pinera.

Pinera said Chile hopes to maintain communication and coordination with China and make next year's APEC meeting a success.

China, Indonesia agree to promote bilateral cooperation

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua]

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Saturday and reached a series of important consensus on deepening ties.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the ongoing Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, which was held in Papua New Guinea's capital city of Port Moresby.

Both China and Indonesia are major developing countries and emerging economies and they share similar position in many fields, said Xi, adding that the Chinese side is willing to maintain high-level communication with Indonesia and guide the development of bilateral ties from a strategic height and long-term perspective.

Noting that the two countries have signed a memorandum of understanding last month on the Belt and Road Initiative and Indonesia's Vision of Global Maritime Fulcrum, Xi called on the two sides to actively push forward relevant cooperation.

China attaches importance to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Corridor initiative proposed by President Widodo, and is willing to launch substantive cooperation with the Indonesian side in this regard at an early date, said the Chinese leader.

China is ready to receive more imports from Indonesia, and advance bilateral cooperation on finance, e-commerce and cultural exchange, Xi said.

China is willing to work with Indonesia to promote the optimization and upgrading of relations between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), push for more progress in East Asia cooperation, and strengthen bilateral communication and coordination within multilateral frameworks including the United Nations, the World Trade Organization and the G20, Xi said.

He said that China will enhance communication and coordination with Indonesia within the framework of APEC, so as to achieve positive progress at the APEC meeting this year, continue to push for the economic integration in the Asia-Pacific, and inject new impetus into the economic development of the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

Widodo, for his part, congratulated China on the success of the just-concluded China International Import Expo, and thanked the Chinese side for its help in the relief work after the earthquake and tsunami recently hit Indonesia.

The Indonesian president said that he was pleased to have reached a series of important cooperation agreements and consensus with China, hoping to strengthen bilateral cooperation in a wide range of fields.

Indonesia supports the development of ASEAN-China relations, and is ready to strengthen communication and coordination with China in international and regional affairs, said the Indonesian president.

Xi, Moon meet on bilateral ties, Korean Peninsula situation

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua]

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in on Saturday, calling for deepening the strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries and strengthening communication on the Korean Peninsula issue.

The consensuses reached between the two heads of state have been implemented effectively over the past year, and the bilateral ties have steadily improved and developed, Xi told Moon on the sidelines of the 26th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in Port Moresby, the capital of the Pacific island country of Papua New Guinea.

Xi urged the two countries to continuously deepen their strategic cooperative partnership and jointly make positive contributions to lasting peace and prosperity in the region.

The two sides should continue to give full play to the guiding role of high-level leaders, respect the core interests and major concerns of each other, strengthen communication, build and consolidate mutual trust, and properly handle sensitive issues, the Chinese president said.

He called for greater efforts from both sides to jointly promote the Belt and Road Initiative, accelerate the second-phase negotiations of the bilateral free trade agreement, and optimize and upgrade their mutually beneficial cooperation.

Xi also proposed that the two sides strengthen coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as APEC, G20 and the China-Japan-South Korea trilateral meetings.

For his part, Moon extended congratulations on the success of the first China International Import Expo, which was held in Shanghai a week ago.

The bilateral relations are now showing a trend of quick recovery, with exchanges and cooperation in various areas picking up markedly, he said.

The South Korean side is willing to make joint efforts with the Chinese side to deepen cooperation, thus benefiting the two peoples, Moon said.

On the Korean Peninsula issue, Xi said that the situation on the peninsula has shown positive changes over the past year, and the peninsular issue has on the whole gone back to the right track of dialogue and consultation.

Facts have proven that our endeavors are effective, he said.

With the leadership of President Moon, South Korea has been committed to promoting the easing of tension on the peninsula, and carrying out reconciliation and interaction activities between the south and north, Xi said.

China supports efforts by the two sides to continuously improve their relations, Xi said.

Currently, the Korean Peninsula situation is at a crucial stage, he said, noting that China and South Korea should enhance communication, and coordinate with each other to advance the process of denuclearization and push for the establishment of a peace mechanism on the peninsula.

The key is that all parties concerned should meet each other halfway, show flexibility, continue their talks and make the talks yield results, Xi added.

Moon said that South Korea and China share common interest in safeguarding peace and stability in Northeast Asia.

The South Korean side thinks highly of and very much appreciates the vital role of China in promoting the easing of Korean Peninsula situation and the settlement of the peninsular issue, he said, adding that South Korea stands ready to coordinate and cooperate with China more closely in this regard.