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Jiang Shusheng (R), vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, meets with Ecuador's Ambassador to China Washington Hago Mendizabal, before a banquet to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Ecuador, in Beijing, capital of China, on Dec. 30, 2009. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi) |
BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Chinese friendship associations held a banquet here Wednesday to celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Ecuador.
The banquet, hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the Association of China-Latin America Friendship, was attended by several senior Chinese officials, including Jiang Shusheng, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
Addressing the banquet, CPAFFC Vice President Jing Dunquan said the two friendship associations would make more efforts to promote contacts between the peoples of the two countries.
According to Jing, the two associations played an active role in issues such as advancing exchanges between the two nations' local governments and educational institutions.
Jing also hailed the rapid development of bilateral ties since the two countries forged diplomatic ties in January 1980, featuring the enhanced mutual political trust, deepening cooperation of mutual benefit and increasingly closer high-level exchanges.
China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin paid a visit to Ecuador in November, during which Jia and Ecuadorian leaders pledged further cooperation of mutual benefit between the two countries.
With the two countries' joint efforts, the bilateral ties would be further consolidated in the future, said Ecuadorian Ambassador to China Washington Hago Mendizabal at the banquet.
The trade volume between China and Ecuador rose to nearly 2.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2008, 400 times more than in the 1980s.