Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, who is attending the APEC 2005 forum in Busan, met on separate occasions with South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Ban Ki-Moon, Singaporean Minister of Foreign Affairs George Yong-Boon Yeo, and New Zealand's Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters Tuesday.

During the meeting between Li and Ban, they spoke highly of the good progress of the bilateral relations between China and South Korea.

Li stressed that the upcoming state visit of President Hu Jintao to South Korea will strategically further define the development goals for the two countries' ties. The visit will also increase mutual understanding and trust and promote sustained growth of the two countries' partnership of comprehensive cooperation, Li added.

Ban said China is South Korea's important partner of strategic cooperation. The South Korean government and people are looking forward to Hu's visit, believing that the visit will upgrade the two countries' mutually beneficial cooperation.

The two side also stressed they should continue to join efforts to push forward the six-party talks, so as to reach the objective of the Korean Peninsula being nuclear free and safeguard the lasting peace and stability of the peninsula.

During the meeting between Li and Yong-Boon Yeo, Li said China appreciated the Singapore government's reiteration of its adherence to the one-China policy and its opposition to "Taiwan independence". He said China and Singapore should further expand cooperation in the trade, security, cultural and educational areasand in international and regional affairs.

Yeo said the Singapore government attaches great importance to its relations with China, with the understanding that proper handling of the Taiwan issue is of paramount importance for maintaining peace and stability in the region. Singapore will stick to the one-China policy, he added.

They also exchanged views on the cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and on the South Asian summit which is under preparation.

During the meeting between Li and Winston Peters, Li said that, to promote the comprehensive cooperation between China and New Zealand, the two sides should keep exchanging high-level visits.

They should deepen the exchange and cooperation in the economic,trade, agricultural, husbandry, cultural and educational areas, push forward the building of the two countries' free trade area, and strengthen consultation and coordination in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and other international and regional organizations.

Peters said it is of great importance for New Zealand to strengthen cooperation with China. New Zealand is willing to keep political dialogue with China, promote trade, economic and educational cooperation between the two countries, and conduct exchanges with China in preventing and containing bird flu, he added.

(Xinhua News Agency November 15, 2005)