Senior Chinese official urges further China-Bulgaria ties

SOFIA, May 13 -- A senior Chinese official on Tuesday urged China and Bulgaria to quicken efforts to implement the consensus reached by the two countries' leaders and continue to promote bilateral ties.

Sun Chunlan, a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), who is on a Bulgaria visit, made the remarks while meeting Bulgarian Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski.

Sun noted that this year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Bulgaria and the two countries' top leaders announced the establishment of an all-round friendly partnership between the two countries in the beginning of this year.

China-Bulgaria ties are now at a new historical starting point, she said, urging both sides to continue enriching the connotation of their all-round friendly partnership.

Sun, also secretary of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee, said Tianjin, a coastal city in north China, is willing to strengthen pragmatic cooperation with Bulgaria in a bid to inject new dynamic impetus into the ties between China and Bulgaria, and that between China and Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.

Oresharski reiterated Bulgaria's stand that the country sticks to the one-China policy and Bulgaria always considers China as an important partner.

He said Bulgaria is willing to work together with China to promote mutually beneficial cooperation in all fields and achieve new progress of the all-round friendly partnership between the two countries.

The Bulgarian prime minister said Bulgaria will make joint efforts with China to promote the friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and CEE countries in all aspects.

On Tuesday, Sun also met with Bulgarian Parliament Speaker Mihail Mikov, and held talks with Sergei Stanishev, leader of both the Bulgarian Socialist Party and the Party of European Socialists.