Chinese vice president meets South African president on bilateral ties

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng met with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Cape Town on Wednesday, with both sides pledging to deepen bilateral cooperation and relations.

Han conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings and best wishes to Ramaphosa. During his visit, Han and his South African counterpart Paul Mashatile will co-chair the ninth plenary session of the China-South Africa Bi-National Commission. They will, under the guidance of the important consensus reached by Xi and Ramaphosa, comprehensively review the achievements of cooperation in key areas between the two countries and systematically plan the direction and key tasks for the next stage, he said.

Han noted that China attaches great importance to its relations with South Africa and stands ready to work with the country to further advance the China-South Africa all-round strategic cooperative partnership in the new era established by the two heads of state.

As true friends who share weal and woe, he said, China and South Africa should continuously enhance political mutual trust, support each other on issues of their respective major concern, maintain the momentum of high-level exchanges, strengthen mutual learning between their ruling parties, and promote practical cooperation in a coordinated manner.

Han further noted that the recently concluded Two Sessions of China reviewed and approved the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) for national economic and social development. In the next five years, China will open its doors wider to the outside world, bringing more opportunities for cooperation between China and South Africa, he said.

President Xi recently announced that starting from May 1, China will fully implement zero-tariff measures for 53 African countries with which it has established diplomatic relations. In this context, Han said, China is willing to work with South Africa to finalize, as soon as possible, the early harvest arrangements under the Framework Agreement on Economic Partnership for Shared Development to ensure that South Africa can benefit on a long-term and stable basis from China's zero-tariff measures.

He said that China encourages its enterprises to increase investment in Africa and at the same time hopes that the South African government will create a more stable business environment for Chinese companies and set an example of mutually beneficial China-Africa cooperation.

Han also stressed that both sides should jointly uphold fairness and justice. In the face of a complex and volatile international landscape, China stands ready to remain South Africa's most reliable friend, strengthen communication and coordination within multilateral mechanisms, and work together to enhance the representation and voice of the Global South in international affairs, he added.

For his part, Ramaphosa asked Han to convey his sincere greetings and best wishes to President Xi.

Ramaphosa said that South Africa firmly adheres to the one-China policy. He noted that the South Africa-China partnership is both distinctive and strategic, development-oriented, and has effectively promoted the development and progress of South Africa and Africa.

Ramaphosa expressed appreciation to President Xi for announcing the full implementation of the zero-tariff measures, saying that South Africa will make good use of these policies to expand exports to China and strengthen cooperation with China in areas such as infrastructure, investment and technology, so as to further enrich the bilateral relations.

He also thanked China for its support for South Africa in hosting the Group of 20 (G20) Leaders' Summit. South Africa stands ready to further enhance communication and coordination with China under multilateral frameworks to promote the common development of Africa and other countries of the Global South, he added.