Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji  Wednesday, on behalf of the Chinese Government and people and in  his own name, congratulated Khaleda Zia on assuming the post of  prime minister of the Government of Bangladesh. 
   In his message to Khaleda Zia, chairperson of the Bangladesh  Nationalist Party, Zhu Rongji said that China and Bangladesh are  close neighbors and the traditional friendship between the people  of the two countries can be traced back to very ancient times.
   In the past years, he said, the friendly relations and  cooperation between the two countries developed constantly. 
   The Chinese premier expressed his hope that the friendly  relations and cooperation between China and Bangladesh will enjoy  further consolidation and development.  
(Xinhua News Agency  10/11/2001)