China, Kyrgyzstan to promote co-op

BEIJING - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Thursday that China is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to deepen mutual political trust, strengthen high-level exchanges and expand mutually beneficial cooperation.

Yang made the remarks when he met with Kyrgyzstan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ruslan Kazakbayev, who came to China to attend the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Foreign Ministers Council, according to a press release issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Relations between China and Kyrgyzstan have seen great progress and fruitful results since they established diplomatic ties in 1992, Yang said, noting that the two countries have completely resolved the border issue left over from history and signed a good-neighborly friendship and cooperation treaty.

China and Kyrgyzstan carried out effective cooperation in combating "the three forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism, and implemented large-scale cooperation projects in economy and trade, electricity, transportation and other fields, Yang said.

"China and Kyrgyzstan have become real good neighbors, good friends and good partners," the foreign minister said, noting that China is willing to further promote bilateral good-neighborly and friendly cooperative relations.

Kazakbayev said China provided Kyrgyzstan with valuable political and economic support and selfless humanitarian assistance during the country's major political events in 2010, and the Kyrgyz side is deeply grateful, according to the press release.

Kyrgyzstan cherishes its traditional friendship with China, Kazakbayev said, noting that Kyrgyzstan is ready to work with China to deepen cooperation under bilateral and multilateral frameworks.

The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.