Xi in South Africa: Chinese and South African leaders vow to further develop ties

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01:37

We begin in South Africa where Chinese President Xi Jinping is on a state visit, and to attend the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. He was welcomed by his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday. Both leaders agreed to further develop bilateral relationship. Yang Zhao has the details.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa rolled out the red carpet for Chinese President Xi Jinping who was greeted with a 21-gun salute on his arrival at Union Building, the seat of the South African government in its administrative capital Pretoria.

President Xi promised to further develop China's relations with South Africa, under what China called a "comprehensive strategic partnership".

That will see an increase in trade and a 14.7 billion US dollar investment to Africa's most industrialized nation. Xi Jinping also highlighted the cooperation regarding security, law enforcement, and the signature the Belt and Road Initiative.

Ahead of the annual BRICS summit, the Chinese and South African leaders discussed ways to cope with trade protectionism. This topic is expected to be a main focus during the summit.

South Africa is President Xi's fourth stop in a five-country diplomatic tour. He earlier spent time in the UAE, Rwanda and Senegal, and will wrap up the visit in Mauritius. His visit comes ahead of a Beijing forum on China-Africa Cooperation in September, which will be attended by top leaders from African countries.