Mexico's Deputy Foreign Minister Maria de Lourdes Aranda on Monday offered greetings to China on the lunar New Year of the Dragon, and the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"I am convinced that this year China will continue to strengthen its growth and its position as a major economy and priority partner for the international community," Aranda said at a reception held by the Chinese embassy at the National Museum of Anthropology.

Feb. 14 marks the 40th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties. "I'm sure the vitality, strength and wisdom that characterize the dragon will be reflected in all projects we undertake this year," she said.

"Dialogue and cooperation between Mexico and China have huge potential," she added.

For his part, Chinese Ambassador Zeng Gang said: "The two countries have maintained high-level exchanges and close political relations are increasingly mature."

Zeng said China and Mexico have set up a number of important dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, including the Strategic Partnership, the Permanent Binational Commission, the Strategic Dialogue and the Permanent Inter-Parliamentary Dialogue Forum.

The two countries have signed more than 60 cooperation agreements covering various sectors. In 2011 alone, two-way trade reached almost 34 billion U.S. dollars.

"If we manage our relationship from the strategic, long-term perspective, with our mutual understanding, respect, support and cooperation, China-Mexico relations will surely have a brighter future," said the ambassador.

China and Mexico established a strategic partnership in 2003. Over the past four decades, China-Mexico relations have enjoyed steady development, with their friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation strengthened in an all-round way. Mexico is China's second largest trading partner in Latin America after Brazil.

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