In a message to General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam Le Kha Phieu and Vietnamese President Tran Duc Luong, Chinese President Jiang Zemin said the Chinese Communist party, government and people have always stressed the importance of maintaining and developing relations with Vietnam.

In 1999, relations between China and Vietnam have grown closer. With friendly exchanges and reciprocal cooperation strengthened, relations between both countries have moved into a new stage, Jiang said.

In a congratulating message to his Vietnamese counterpart Nong Duc Manh, Li Peng, chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress, said that with mutual efforts, friendship between the Chinese and Vietnamese people and cooperation between both countries' congresses could be further consolidated.

Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji said in another message of congratulation to his Vietnamese counterpart Phan Van Khai that in the previous year the trade volume between China and Vietnam increased sharply, economic cooperation was deepened and the scale of cooperation was constantly expanded. It's a steadfast policy of China to further develop friendly relationship and overall cooperation with Vietnam. The Chinese government is willing to cooperate with the Vietnamese government to push the friendly bilateral relations to a higher level, the Chinese premier said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan also greeted the occasion with a message to Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Dy Nien, wishing that the bilateral cooperative ties be further fortified.

(Xinhua)