1st LD: "All-weather friends" China, Zimbabwe agree to boost practical cooperation for common development

China and Zimbabwe agreed Tuesday to translate their time-honored friendship into stronger impetus for bilateral practical cooperation so as to achieve common development and prosperity.

The consensus came as Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is here for a state visit to the African country, and his Zimbabwean counterpart, Robert Mugabe, held talks in the State House and jointly charted the course for the future development of bilateral ties.

China and Zimbabwe, with their traditional friendship both having a long history and growing ever stronger now, are "real all-weather friends," said Xi, adding that they should not only be good friends on politics but also be good partners on development.

Noting that the two countries have supported each other and carried out sincere cooperation during their respective development, Xi stressed that China will never forget its old friends.

"My visit is aimed at consolidating the China-Zimbabwe traditional friendship, deepening practical cooperation and lifting bilateral relations to a higher level, so as to bring more benefits to our two peoples," said the Chinese president.

Calling China an "all-weather" friend of Zimbabwe, Mugabe said his country hopes to learn from China's experience in socioeconomic development, receive more assistance from China and expand bilateral cooperation in such fields as agriculture, industry and infrastructure.

After their talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of a bilateral economic and technological cooperation agreement and a series of other deals covering such fields as infrastructure construction, production capacity, investment and financing, as well as wild life protection. Endi