Li Changchun, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met in Beijing on Wednesday afternoon with a delegation from the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (DPT).

The Turkmenistan delegation was led by Onjik Musaev, first secretary of the Political Committee of the DPT. The two sides vowed to further develop the ties between the two nations and the parties.

Li , a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, hailed the long history of friendly relations between the two countries, and the development of cooperation in bilateral trade and commerce as well as in regional and international affairs.

He expressed his appreciation to Turkmenistan's firm support for China on Taiwan and Tibet issues. The regular exchanges of visits between the CPC and the DPT high-level officials had constituted an important basis of the bilateral ties.

Musaev said Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov attached great importance to the friendly ties with China. He hoped the two nations would continue to cement cooperation in various fields.

The DPT, former Communist Party of Turkmenistan, was established in 1991 and now has more than 120,000 members. It forged relations with the CPC in 1992.

(Xinhua News Agency January 17, 2008)