Jiang said China and Angola share a time-honored friendship. In the past 20 years, the two countries have enjoyed sincere and fruitful cooperation in the political, economic and trade, and cultural fields.

In his message, President Jiang said he was pleased to see the end of the civil war in Angola. He added that the advent of peace will help broaden the prospect for the two countries' cooperation in various fields.

As two influential countries in their respective regions, China and Angola can both benefit a lot by developing a friendly and cooperative relationship, which will also be beneficial to the solidarity between China and Africa, to the cooperation between developing countries, and to world peace, Jiang said.

China is willing to exert joint efforts with Angola to strive for a brighter future on the basis of mutual respect and trust, equality and mutual benefit, the Chinese president added.

Angolan President dos Santos said in his message that since the establishment of diplomatic ties, Angola and China have witnessed a steady development of friendship in the spirit of mutual understanding and mutual respect,

Angola's present peaceful domestic environment provides a golden and unprecedented opportunity for cooperation between the two countries. He believed that it was in the interests of both peoples to promote bilateral cooperation.

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and his Angolan counterpart, Joao Bernardo de Miranda, also exchanged greetings on this occasion.

(Xinhua News Agency January 13, 2003)