Top Chinese leaders meet foreign leaders attending ASEM

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Source: CCTV.com | 10-24-2008 09:09

Top Chinese leaders have met foreign leaders, who are here for the seventh summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting.

Chinese President Hu Jintao met on Thursday afternoon with  European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso who is in  Beijing to attend the seventh Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM)  to be held on Oct. 24 to 25.(Xinhua Photo)

So far, leaders of more than 40 countries and organizations have arrived in the Chinese capital. The number of foreign leaders attending the summit has reached a new high this year. And more than 1,200 foreign journalists will also be in Beijing to cover the event.

To begin his busy Thursday schedule, President Hu Jintao met with his Indonesian counterpart, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Hu Jintao said China is willing to work with Indonesia to deal with the challenges of financial stability and the healthy development of the regional economy.

Susilo noted that their cooperation in politics, economics and the judiciary has witnessed fast growth since Indonesia and China signed the joint communique on strategic partnership.

Hu Jintao also met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. The two leaders talked about the free trade agreement between China and Singapore signed earlier Thursday morning. They said the pact shows that economic ties between the two countries had entered a new stage.

During his meeting with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Hu Jintao said China is willing to work with the EU to jointly deal with the current global financial crisis, and to maintain the stability in the global financial market. Barroso said the EU appreciates China's responsible attitude in fighting the financial crisis. The two sides agreed to strengthen both political and economic cooperation.

In other meetings, Hu Jintao also talked about bilateral relations with Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, Finnish President Tarja Halonen, Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi.