China, Uzbekistan pledge to advance high-quality cooperation

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday met with Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov in the city of Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, with both sides pledging to promote all-round high-quality cooperation.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, stressed that Uzbekistan is China's first all-weather comprehensive strategic partner in the new era, which highlights the unique and strategic nature of China-Uzbekistan relations.

Wang said that the two sides should work toward achieving more high-quality outcomes in their all-round cooperation.

He called on the two sides to continuously expand and strengthen cooperation in key areas, promote cooperation in emerging sectors, deepen energy cooperation and strengthen law enforcement and security cooperation in combating the "three forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism, as well as transnational organized crime.

Saidov expressed the willingness to actively learn from China's successful experience, deepen the Belt and Road and all-round mutually beneficial cooperation with China, and push forward the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.

Uzbekistan welcomes more Chinese tourists and is willing to take further measures to facilitate personnel exchanges between the two countries, he noted.

Following the meeting, China and Uzbekistan signed an agreement on mutual visa exemption.