Chinese Diplomat Underlines Importance Of Ahmadinejad’s Visit To China

Beijing, June 6, IRNA – Chinese Ambassador to Tehran Yu Hongyang said Beijing attached great importance to development of ties with Iran. In a statement issued on Wednesday on the occasion of the arrival of the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Beijing, he stressed that his country attaches great importance to the role Iran plays in maintaining regional and global peace and stability. President Ahmadinejad is in Beijing to attend the 12th summit meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to be held on June 6-7. Describing Iran as a good friend and partner for China in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the ambassador stated that Iran and China have very good cooperation in economic, energy and transportation areas within the framework of the organization. He further said the political confidence has been growing between the two countries in the past few years and the official visit of the Iranian President to his country is a good chance for both countries to promote cooperation. During his stay, Ahmadinejad will meet Chinese President Hu Jintao, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and speaker of the National People's Congress. The SCO is an inter-governmental international organization established in June 2001 by Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Observer states include India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan, while dialogue partners include Belarus and Sri Lanka./end