Ecuador seeks to boost ties with China

People's Daily Online, 21 November, 2007

President Hu Jintao and his Ecuadorian counterpart Rafael Correa yesterday sought to increase bilateral trade and cooperation and hold more political dialogues.

To expand business cooperation, Hu urged more Chinese enterprises to invest in Ecuador and welcomed Ecuadorian companies to tap the Chinese markets.

"Since China and Ecuador established diplomatic ties in 1980, bilateral relations have grown steadily, benefiting peoples of the two countries greatly," Hu said during his talks with Correa, who is on a weeklong visit to China.

Hu encouraged cooperation in areas such as energy, education, healthcare, science and sports, as well as consultations within the framework of multilateral organizations such as the UN and the WTO.

Praising China's achievements, Correa said: "China is an ancient and energetic country. It has made huge achievements because it has been insisting on a development mode that is based on its own conditions."

"We regard China as a brotherly country and we will continue to learn from each other to take our bilateral ties to a new level," he said, and reiterated Ecuador's adherence to the one-China policy.

After the talks, Hu and Correa officiated at the signing ceremony of a series of agreements in areas such as trade and business, agriculture, energy and mining.

Chinese enterprises have put in $1.8 billion in Ecuador, the highest in Latin America. Bilateral trade, too, has been continuing smoothly, with the volume exceeding $699 million in the first nine months of this year.

Ecuador's main exports to China are farm goods, wood, metal and fish. But the single largest export commodity is banana. China's exports to Ecuador include garments, toys, shoes and TV sets.

Correa reached Beijing on Monday, and will visit Shanghai and China's ancient capital of Xi'an, too, during his weeklong stay.

Correa will meet top legislator Wu Bangguo and Li Changchun, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Political Bureau, today.

He will address the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and attend the opening ceremony of the China-Ecuador tourist and trade gathering and an exhibition on Ecuadorian Contemporary Art in Beijing, too.

Source: China Daily