China and Bulgaria have agreed to lift their ties to a strategic partnership as Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with his Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev in Beijing on Wednesday.  

President Xi called on the two countries to strengthen mutual trust and deepen all-round cooperation including between governments, legislatures and parties to inject new impetus to bilateral ties.

The two countries have lots of similar stances on the international situation, Xi said, adding that the two sides both safeguard the international system based on multilateralism and international laws.

Bulgaria is one of the earliest among Central and Eastern European countries to sign deals with China under the framework of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

China is willing to strengthen the alignment of development strategies with Bulgaria, improve the connectivity of infrastructure construction, expand trade and investment, and promote cultural exchanges, Xi said.

China firmly supports the integration process of Europe and supports it to play a bigger role in international affairs, Xi continued.

The Chinese president also expressed his hope that the Europe Union under the new leadership can maintain the stability and continuity of its policy towards China.

On his part, President Radev said the BRI is conducive to world peace, and prosperity and Bulgaria is willing to maintain its high engagement in it.  

He also expressed willingness to further work with China in trade, transportation, aviation, logistics, finance, innovation, and cultural exchanges. He vowed to take advantages of Bulgaria's location to better connect Asia with Europe and help promote cooperation among China and Central and Eastern European countries.

Before the talks, a welcome ceremony was held for Radev.

Radev, who's on a state visit to China from July 1 to 5, also attended the 13th Summer Davos Forum in Dalian City, northeast China's Liaoning Province, which was held from July 1 to 3.