Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Uzbek President Islam Karimov vowed to promote the win-win cooperation between the two countries "to a higher level" when they met in Tashkent on Friday.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Uzbek President Islam Karimov meet in Tashkent Friday, vowing to promote the win-win cooperation between the two countries "to a higher level".

During the meeting, Karimov congratulated China on its successful convening of the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

He said he was confident that China will achieve greater achievements along the path of the socialism with Chinese characteristics and contribute more to the world's peace and development.

Karimov hailed the growth of the bilateral relations and expressed his appreciation for China's support and assistance to the country's economic and social development.

Uzbekistan is satisfied with the high-standard cooperation in economy, trade and investment between the two countries, and hopes to expand cooperation in electromechanical technology and energy, he said.

The Uzbek president reiterated his country's adherence to the one-China policy, pledging continued support for China on the issues of Taiwan and the combat against the "East Turkistan" separatist forces.

Echoing the views of Karimov on bilateral ties, Wen called the two countries "friendly neighbors and good partners" of mutual trust and sincere cooperation.

China and Uzbekistan support each other on major issues of common concern and have achieved fruitful results in various fields, Wen said.

Both sides coordinate closely in dealing with regional and world affairs in an effort to promote regional stability and development, Wen said.

China appreciates the long-term support from the Uzbek side on the Taiwan issue and China's combat against the "East Turkistan" terrorist forces, Wen said, adding that China will continue to respect Uzbekistan's path for social development chosen by its people and honor the efforts made by the Uzbek government in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and boosting the national economy.

The Chinese premier also noted that the security and stability in Central Asia can only be maintained by the countries in the region.

Wen proposed that the two nations should enhance bilateral cooperation in security, fight against drug trafficking and against terrorism under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in a bid to safeguard peace and stability for both countries and the whole region at large.

Responding to Wen's proposal, Karimov said Uzbekistan would strengthen its cooperation with China in law enforcement on security issues and jointly combat the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism.

Karimov agreed to the proposals Wen put forward at the sixth Meeting of Prime Ministers of the Member States of the SCO, noting that SCO has a great potential for development.

He called on the SCO member states to expand mutual understanding and trust to promote cooperation.

(Xinhua News Agency November 3, 2007)