Saudi King Fahd Ibn Abdul-Aziz and Deputy Prime Minister Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul-Aziz on Tuesday held separate meetings with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing on bilateral relations.

In the meeting, the Saudi leaders voiced satisfaction with the development of bilateral ties, and praised the significant role played by China in international and regional affairs.

The two countries share many common interests and have the same views on important international and regional issues, they said. Pointing out broad cooperation between both countries, they said Saudi Arabia will continue to abide by the "one China" principle, and will not forge any formal ties with Taiwan.

Both countries will also support each other in human rights and other issues, they added.

For his part, the Chinese top diplomat said that under the sponsorship of both countries' leaders, bilateral economic, trade, cultural and educational cooperation has developed steadily, noting that China and Saudi Arabia support each other in international affairs.

The Chinese people are a sincere friend and cooperative partner to the Saudi people, Li said, thanking the hosts for supporting China on the issues of Taiwan and human rights.
 
He also expressed his hope that bilateral cooperation will be further reinforced through common efforts.

The Chinese foreign minister arrived in Jeddah on Monday to kick off a four-day official visit to Saudi Arabia.

(Xinhua News Agency September 8, 2004)