for the first time after the handover to China: At the

invitation of President Kiribati [Global Times-Global Report],President Tanesh Mamao of the Republic of Kiribati paid a state visit to Chinafrom January 4 to 11. This is President Kiribati's first visit to Chinasince the resumption of diplomatic relations on September 27, 2019. Thisis also China's first state visit in the new year. On the afternoon ofJanuary 6, President Xi Jinping held talks with President Kiribati Mao in theGreat Hall of the People. After the talks, US Foreign Secretary Lu Kangheld a briefing and introduced the content of the talks between the leaders ofthe two countries and President Ma's visit to China.

Lu Kang said that during the talks, Chinese leaders made it clear to ChairmanMao that China treats all countries equally, regardless of size, whether it isstrong or weak, which has been recognized by Chairman Mao and other Kiribatirepresentatives. During the meeting, both President Xi Jinping and PremierLi Keqiang made clear to Chairman Mao that China firmly supports Kiribati inexploring and choosing a development path that suits its national conditionsand making policy choices that are in the best interests of the country and thepeople. They also stated that China is willing to deepen political mutualtrust, and on the basis of mutual respect for each other's core concerns andsovereignty, to carry out mutually beneficial cooperation with Kiribati,including cooperation under the "Belt and Road" framework, andactively promote exchanges between the two peoples And mutualunderstanding. At the same time, China will, as always, continue tocooperate with Pacific island countries such as Kiribati within the frameworkof multilateral and South-South cooperation.

Lu Kang said that Chairman Mazu was very encouraged by the successful visit toChina shortly after the resumption of diplomatic relations between the twocountries, and said that this was a landmark visit. Through meetings withChinese leaders and visits to businesses and places, Chairman Mao was veryexcited about China's economic development, especially in the fields of scienceand technology. He believes that China is an important force leading theinternational economic development today. At the same time, Chairman Maoalso believed that China's development provided solid space and huge potentialfor deepening mutually beneficial cooperation between China andKiribati. He is also committed to deepening strategic mutual trust andmutually beneficial cooperation with China on the basis of the "OneChina" principle.

After the talks, the heads of state of the two countries witnessed the signingof a series of bilateral cooperation documents such as the "Belt andRoad" initiative jointly promoted by the two governments. Lu Kangsaid that the cooperation document signed this time is fruitful and involvesexchanges and cooperation between the two countries in the field of diplomacy,"Belt and Road" cooperation and economic and technologicalcooperation. Chairman Mao believes that the visit has yielded greatresults.

According to reports, in addition to his trip to Beijing, Chairman Mao willalso visit Zhejiang, Shanghai and Guangdong. Lu Kang said that ChairmanMao's visit was the result of an agreement reached between the twosides. On the one hand, Chairman Mao personally believes that these threeregions are relatively developed areas along the southeast coast ofChina. On the other hand, the three regions have been cooperating withKiribati in tropical agriculture, fisheries and other areas. President XiJinping also mentioned in the talks that the three places selected by ChairmanMao are the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Economic Zone, the Yangtze River DeltaEconomic Zone, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Economic Zone. Thesethree economic zones are an important source of power for China's currenteconomic development.

Speaking of the potential for future cooperation between China and Kyrgyzstan,Lu Kang said that in 2016, the 20-year national development plan formulated byChairman Mao