JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 23 -- China stands ready to work with South Africa to firmly support each other and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Sunday.

Li made the remarks when meeting with South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile on the sidelines of the 20th Group of 20 (G20) Summit held here on Saturday and Sunday.

China and South Africa are good friends and brothers enjoying a deep friendship, Li said.

In September last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, in Beijing and reached important consensus on advancing bilateral ties, Li said.

China stands ready to work with South Africa to follow the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, further enhance mutual political trust, firmly support each other, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and deliver more outcomes of their all-round strategic cooperative partnership in the new era.

Li noted that China is ready to step up alignment with South Africa, and help more quality and competitive South African products enter the Chinese market by negotiating and signing an agreement on economic partnership for shared development and advancing in South Africa the early implementation of China's zero-tariff treatment for 100 percent tariff lines for African countries having diplomatic relations with China.

China supports more competitive Chinese companies in investing in South Africa and enhancing cooperation in such areas as new energy, automobiles, healthcare, digital economy and infrastructure, with a view to broadening and upgrading bilateral cooperation to better serve the modernization of both countries, Li said.

He expressed the hope that South Africa will better protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and the safety of their personnel.

China-South Africa cooperation has long played a leading and demonstrative role in China-Africa cooperation, Li said, pledging that China is ready to strengthen communication with South Africa within frameworks including the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), promote the implementation of the outcomes of the FOCAC Beijing Summit, and jointly create a bright future of development and prosperity for China and Africa.

Li called on the two sides to step up multilateral coordination and work with the wider Global South countries to promote a more just and equitable international order.

For his part, Mashatile expressed gratitude for China's strong support for South Africa as the host of the G20 Summit.

Stressing that South Africa firmly upholds the one-China policy, Mashatile said that his country stands ready to take China's implementation of zero-tariff treatment in African countries as an opportunity to deepen bilateral cooperation in economy and trade, industry, agriculture, digital economy and green development, and to enhance people-to-people exchanges so as to advance the continuous and in-depth development of the all-round strategic cooperative partnership in the new era between the two countries.

Chinese enterprises are welcome to invest and operate in South Africa, and South Africa will spare no effort to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals and companies, he said.

Mashatile also said that South Africa highly commends the four major global initiatives proposed by President Xi, and is willing to work with China to promote multilateral communication and coordination, uphold multilateralism, safeguard the authority of the United Nations and promote the common development and prosperity of Global South nations.