Chinese President Xi Jinping met with visiting United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi told Guterres that China will as always firmly support the work of the United Nations, making new contributions to maintain world peace and development and build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Hosting the Beijing Winter Olympics and the Winter Paralympics is China's solemn commitment to the international community, Xi said.

A simple, safe and splendid Olympics, which provides a stage for ice and snow athletes from all countries to surpass themselves, will help achieve the goal of building a healthy China, while also injecting confidence and strength into the world troubled by the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

By hosting the Beijing Winter Olympics, the Chinese people have once again shown their positive spirit and strength, the Chinese president stressed. "With such a strong backing of the people, we can make anything happen."

Xi also pointed out that there are three major events deserving people's serious reflection, namely showing solidarity against the pandemic, enhancing development and promoting democracy.

China fully supports the UN's target of vaccinating 70 percent of the world population by the middle of this year, Xi said, adding China has already fulfilled its commitment to providing two billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the world by 2021.

Xi vowed to increase China's assistance to developing countries in fighting the pandemic.

In terms of the Global Development Initiative, Xi said it is highly compatible with the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which aims at promoting stronger, greener and healthier global development.

China is ready to work closely with the United Nations to jointly promote these initiatives, the Chinese president noted.

There is no one-size-fits-all development model, Xi stressed, adding all countries have the right to choose the path that meets their national conditions and the needs of their people.

Guterres congratulated China for successfully holding the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

He said it's a great achievement for China to hold such a large-scale and safe event and the world needs such an event to send a message that people of any country, ethnicity or religion can unite and cooperate.

Guterres also mentioned China's efforts in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic by providing two billion vaccine shots, and hailed the significance of Xi's initiative to build a sustainable and balanced world.

The UN Secretary-General also thanked China for supporting the UN's stance on multilateralism and cooperation.

He said the UN hopes China can play a more important role in reforming the international system.