Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon in Beijing on Tuesday.

Noting that steadfast mutual support is the defining feature of China-Tajikistan relations, Xi said that regardless of how the external environment may change, China and Tajikistan will always be good neighbors that help each other, good friends who trust each other, and good partners who work together for development.

By signing the China-Tajikistan Treaty on Permanent Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, the two sides will fully showcase their strong political mutual trust and provide a solid guarantee for the enduring friendship between the two nations, Xi said.

Xi stressed that China will, as always, support Tajikistan in following a development path suited to its national conditions and in upholding national independence, sovereignty and security.

He called on both sides to focus on high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, thoroughly align their development strategies and work together to advance their respective development goals.

Xi said the two sides should enhance the scale and quality of trade and investment, ensure the implementation of key projects, expand cooperation in green energy, the digital economy, smart cities, artificial intelligence and other areas, and boost scientific and technological innovation.

The two sides should deepen people-to-people exchanges and cultivate a new model of sub-national cooperation to enhance mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples, the Chinese president said.

Both sides need to enhance cooperation on law enforcement and security, take firm action against the "three evil forces" of terrorism, extremism and separatism, and work together to maintain regional stability, he said.

China welcomes Tajikistan to join the International Organization for Mediation and stands ready to strengthen cooperation within the United Nations, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the China-Central Asia mechanism, and other frameworks, Xi said.

For his part, Rahmon said cooperation between the two countries in areas such as trade, investment, transportation and agriculture has produced fruitful results, with major projects proceeding smoothly, and people-to-people exchanges growing closer.

Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, and Tajikistan firmly adheres to the one-China principle, he said.

Tajikistan looks forward to working with China to strengthen practical cooperation in areas such as critical minerals, artificial intelligence and sci-tech innovation, facilitate mutual personnel visits, enhance educational exchanges and promote greater development of bilateral relations, said Rahmon.

The Global Governance Initiative put forward by President Xi is of great significance to the world, he noted, adding that Tajikistan highly appreciates China's unremitting efforts to promote the political settlement of international hotspot issues and its important role in easing the situation in the Middle East.

He said Tajikistan is ready to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China and jointly combat the "three evil forces" of terrorism, extremism and separatism and transnational crimes to maintain regional stability.

Following the talks, the two heads of state signed and issued the Treaty between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Tajikistan on Permanent Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, as well as a joint statement on deepening their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the new era.

The two heads of state also witnessed the signing of over 10 cooperation documents in areas such as party-to-party exchanges, the economy, trade and investment, artificial intelligence, green mining and media.

During the visit, the two sides also signed over 10 cooperation documents in areas including agriculture, culture, education, housing development, inspection and quarantine and market supervision.

(With input from Xinhua)