Xi applauds cooperation with Colombia

President Xi Jinping said China welcomes Colombia's participation in jointly building the Belt and Road as he met with his Colombian counterpart Ivan Duque in Beijing on Wednesday.

Duque was making a four-day state visit to China from Sunday to Wednesday, his first visit to the country since becoming president last year.

Xi said he highly appreciates Duque's dedication to deepening the traditional friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries by making this visit.

Since next year will mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Colombia, Xi said Beijing is willing to jointly plan with Bogota the blueprint for future development and push forward bilateral ties to a new level.

He urged the two countries to keep closer high-level exchanges, share experiences on state governance and tap the full potential of bilateral cooperation.

China will continue to support the Colombian peace process and post-conflict reconstruction, Xi said.

Xi also expressed China's support for Latin America to accelerate its integration process as well as appropriately deal with regional issues, including those related to Venezuela, through dialogue and coordination.

Duque said his country is willing to actively participate in the joint construction of the Belt and Road as the initiative bears great significance in promoting global interconnectivity and cooperation.

He said Chinese companies are welcome to invest in Colombia and every bilateral cooperative project between the two countries will be considered support for the Colombian peace process, thus contributing to the country's economic and social development.

The two leaders also witnessed the signing ceremony of a series of bilateral cooperative agreements after their meeting.

Earlier on Wednesday, Premier Li Keqiang also met with Duque.

Li said China is willing to expand two-way investment with Colombia.

China is now Colombia's second-largest trading partner with bilateral trade reaching $14.6 billion last year, said the Foreign Ministry.