Chinese President Hu Jintao holds a welcoming ceremony for his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing
On the afternoon of September 2, 2010, Chinese President Hu Jintao held talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich at the Great Hall of the People. The two heads of state exchanged in-depth views on bilateral ties and major issues of common concern and reached broad consensus, agreeing to lift the friendly and cooperative relationship between the two countries in an all-round manner.
Hu said that since the establishment of diplomatic ties 18 years ago, China-Ukraine relations have been developing smoothly with frequent exchanges at all levels based on the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. Both sides have made remarkable achievements in cooperation on economy, trade, investment, science and technology and maintained dynamic cultural, educational and people-to-people cooperation as well as exchanges at local levels. Hu said the consensus he reached with Yanukovich during a meeting at the nuclear security summit in Washington in April added fresh impetus to bilateral ties.
Yanukovich said Ukraine highly praises China’s remarkable achievements in economic and social development and appreciates China’s important contributions to coping with the global financial crisis. The Ukrainian people cherish friendly relations with the Chinese people very much. The two heads of state reached important consensus on furthering bilateral ties during a meeting at the nuclear security summit in Washington in April, which pushed bilateral ties for new and positive progress. The Ukrainian side is ready to work with China to earnestly implement various consensuses and lift bilateral ties to a higher level.
Hu said that China has always placed importance on its relations with Ukraine and is ready to work with the country to enhance political dialogue and consultations through high-level visits and inter-government contact and by proceeding from a strategic and long-term perspective. He urged both sides to well implement their joint statement and other important cooperation agreements and further deepen and upgrade the ties. Hu said China will continue to strengthen cooperation with Ukraine in regional and international organizations to jointly promote global peace, stability and prosperity.
Hu said that China-Ukraine economic and trade cooperation enjoys a sound basis and is highly complementary. Both sides should seize the opportunity, tap the potential to the full and expand the scale of trade. They should strive to increase two-way annual trade to 10 billion U.S. dollars by 2012. Hu suggested both sides further expand and enhance cooperation on science, technology, aeronautics, space and infrastructure construction. He urged the two sides to earnestly implement the cooperative projects that they have agreed upon and to actively explore new projects to push bilateral economic and trade cooperation to a new level.
Hu said people-to-people and cultural exchanges are a bridge and bond for the development of bilateral ties. Both sides should continue to push forward cultural, educational, sports and tourism cooperation, encourage youth exchanges, support visits and performances by artists and cultural groups of the two countries, expand exchanges on arts, broadcasting, film and television, publishing products and ensure the success of cultural days in a bid to build up mutual understanding and friendship between both peoples.
Echoing Hu’s important proposals on furthering bilateral ties, Yanukovich said the two sides should work together to tap into the potential and enrich bilateral strategic cooperation. He said the two sides should strengthen political dialogue, boost high-level visits and increase exchanges between political parties and legislatures. Yanukovich expressed readiness to expand bilateral cooperation in the areas of trade, economy, investment, finance, science, technology, infrastructure construction, agriculture and aerospace. Both sides should strive to fulfill the target of increasing two-way annual trade to 10 billion U.S. dollars by 2012. He called on both sides to deepen humanities exchanges, expand people-to-people cooperation and enhance communication and coordination in international affairs. The cooperation documents signed by both sides including the joint statement are of great significance to boosting pragmatic cooperation and lifting bilateral ties. The Ukrainian side is ready to work with China to well implement these agreements and push forward bilateral ties. Yanukovich reaffirmed that his country will firmly adhere to the one-China policy.
Following the talks, the two heads of state attended the signing ceremony of several cooperation documents including the joint statement on lifting China-Ukraine friendly cooperative relations in a comprehensive manner.
Prior to the talks, President Hu held a welcoming ceremony for Yanukovich at the North Hall of the Great Hall of the People. Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) Sang Guowei, State Councilor Dai Bingguo, Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Chen Zongxing, Vice Chairperson Li Dang of the Central Committee of China National Democratic Construction Association, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Minister of Agriculture Hang Changfu, MOC International Trade Representative & Vice Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng and Chinese Ambassador to Ukraine Zhang Xiyun attended the ceremony.