Yang's Ethiopia, Guinea trip strengthens ties

China hopes to make ties with Ethiopia a leading example of China-Africa and South-South cooperation, State Councilor Yang Jiechi said on Monday while meeting Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.

Yang met Hailemariam in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa during an African trip that also includes a stop in Guinea.

Hailemariam praised China's role in international affairs and voiced appreciation for China's support and assistance to his country.

As a pilot country for China-Africa production capacity cooperation, Ethiopia welcomes more Chinese investment, the prime minister said.

Yang said Ethiopia is an important partner for China in Africa, and that China hopes to deepen mutual trust with Ethiopia, push for cooperation in various fields and have closer coordination with the country over international and regional affairs.

China and Ethiopia have been providing support to one another on issues of their core interests, Yang said.

He said China hopes to work with Ethiopia to further implement pacts between the two nations as well as those reached during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2015.

Liu Hongwu, director of the Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University, said the rapid economic development of Ethiopia in recent years is to a large extent due to its "close and all-around" economic cooperation with China, including in transport infrastructure and production capacity.

In 2016, Chinese companies constructed a railway linking Ethiopia and Djibouti, another eastern African country. China also is working with Ethiopia to develop an industrial park in Ethiopia.

Liu said China-Africa cooperation has been accelerating in recent years, and it now focuses not only on trade but also investment and production capacity.

Also on Monday, Yang met Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome and discussed the situation in Africa and China-Africa relations.

Yang is expected to wrap up his visit to Ethiopia and Guinea on Wednesday.

wangqingyun@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 03/22/2017 page3)