Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro on Tuesday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi noted that both China and Portugal are countries with profound historical heritage, and the two peoples share the spirit of openness, inclusiveness, enterprise and self-reliance.

The two sides properly resolved the question of Macao through friendly consultations, he said, adding that in recent years, important achievements have been made in cooperation across various fields, setting a fine example of mutual respect and mutual benefit between countries with different social systems and national conditions. 

Noting that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Portugal, Xi said China stands ready to strengthen strategic communication with Portugal and make greater contributions to the prosperity and progress of the two countries and the world through unity and cooperation. 

He called on both countries to carry forward traditional friendship, enhance mutual trust and support, foster greater synergy between their development strategies, expand practical cooperation in innovation, green development, ocean, medicine and other fields, leverage Macao's unique role as a bridge, make good use of mechanisms such as the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation Between China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries, and achieve higher levels of mutual benefit and win-win results.

The world has entered a new period of turbulence and transformation, and humanity once again finds itself at a historical crossroads, Xi said.

China stands ready to enhance multilateral coordination with Portugal, jointly practice true multilateralism, uphold the authority of the United Nations, safeguard the free trade system, and work for a more just and equitable global governance system, he added.

Montenegro conveyed Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa's cordial greetings to Xi.

He noted that Portugal-China relations are both time-honored and future-oriented, and the two countries had properly resolved the question of Macao through friendly consultation.

The remarkable success of Macao over the past 25 years stands as full vindication of the Portuguese government's decision at that time, Montenegro said, adding that Portugal will continue to adhere to the one-China policy and will never forget the invaluable support China provided during the most challenging period of its economy.

Portugal is firmly committed to deepening friendly cooperation with China and looks forward to enhancing political mutual trust, strengthening trade and economic ties, promoting two-way investment, and deepening cooperation in energy, finance, public health and water conservancy – all with the aim of advancing bilateral relations, the Portuguese prime minister said.

Portugal agrees with the important ideas underpinning the Global Governance Initiative proposed by Xi, stands ready to work jointly to safeguard multilateralism, and welcomes China's greater contribution to improving the global governance system, said Montenegro, adding that China is an irreplaceable cooperation partner for Europe, and Portugal is ready to play an active role in promoting the healthy and stable development of EU-China relations.