The king said the Bahraini people are proud of the achievements that the Chinese people has made and the two countries should strengthen cooperation in political, economic and cultural fields and maintain close consultations on international and regional issues.

He reiterated Bahrain's support on issues of Taiwan, Tibet and human rights and expressed appreciation of China's efforts in promoting global and regional peace and stability.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa said Bahrain hopes to strengthen its friendship and cooperation with China and he hopes that more and more Chinese companies can expand business in Bahrain.

Earlier, Liu also held talks with Bahraini Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa.

Bahrain is the second leg of Liu's good-will visits to the Middle East region. He has visited Iran and will visit Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

(Xinhua News Agency November 25, 2008)