China ready to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with Angola: Chinese FM

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) meets with Angolan Foreign Minister Tete Antonio on the sidelines of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Dakar, Senegal, Nov. 29, 2021. (Xinhua/Li Yan)

DAKAR, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Monday that China is ready to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with Angola.

Wang made the remarks when meeting with Angolan Foreign Minister Tete Antonio on the sidelines of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

Wang said China attaches great importance to bilateral relations and supports Angola in playing a bigger role in international and regional affairs.

Noting that the two countries have worked together in unity on the international arena to safeguard each other's legitimate rights and interests, Wang said it has not only manifested their traditional bilateral friendship, but also demonstrated the high level of political mutual trust between the two countries.

China is ready to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation and help Angola achieve faster development, Wang said.

For his part, Antonio congratulated the successful opening of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the FOCAC, noting that Chinese President Xi Jinping's important speech is of great importance to Africa's future development.

He said Angola highly appreciated that China has shared weal and woe with Angola and jointly fought with Angola against the COVID-19 pandemic, which has not only made important contributions to Angola's efforts to save people's lives, but also set an example for international cooperation against the pandemic.

Angola appreciates China's positive role in addressing the shortage of vaccines in Africa, and hopes to receive greater support from China in joint vaccine production and transfer of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights, Antonio said.

Wang said that China supports Chinese enterprises in actively exploring cooperation with Angola on vaccine production to help Angola overcome the pandemic at an early date, and is ready to provide assistance within its capacity for Angola's post-pandemic economic development.