Chinese President Hu Jintao on Monday expressed condolences over a landslide in Kazakhstan, which killed 28 people, including nine Chinese nationals, a day earlier.  

In a message to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Hu extended heart-felt condolences to the victims and their families, expressing the belief that the Kazakh people, under the leadership of their president and government, will emerge stronger from the disaster.

The Chinese victims were construction workers repairing a sanatorium in rural Alma-Ata, the Kazakh capital.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao also extended his condolences over the tragedy. He ordered the Chinese embassy in Alma-Ata, and the Chinese victims' employer, China National Petroleum Corporation, to work with the Kazakh side to facilitate funeral and related arrangements.

(Xinhua News Agency March 16, 2004)