Zhu said friendship and cooperation had continued to advance with efforts from both sides since they forged diplomatic ties 10 years ago.

He noted that the Chinese government had always attached importance to the bilateral relations between the countries, citing the successful talks between the two heads of state and the joint statement signed Monday which mapped out the future development of bilateral ties.

He also pointed to the rapid development of bilateral economic and trade relations in recent years, saying China was confident of the development of such relations and welcomed Slovakian entrepreneurs to China.

The attention paid to bilateral economic and trade relations by the Slovak side, which could be shown by the large number of Slovakian business people accompanying Schuster to China, was bound to help push forward economic and trade cooperation, stressed Zhu.

The Chinese side expected the development of bilateral economic and trade relations to be further enhanced in the coming years, added Zhu.

He also voiced his appreciation for the Slovakian government's one-China position.

Schuster said his talks with Chinese President Jiang Zemin and the joint statement signed Monday laid a firm foundation for the future development of bilateral relations.

Slovakia and China could conduct more extensive cooperation in various fields, he said.

He added that Slovakia valued its relations with China, and he was convinced that bilateral relations would make further progress.

(Xinhua News Agency January 8, 2003)