Chinese President Hu Jintao has met several heads of state and government leaders after arriving in New York on Monday for a UN climate change summit and other UN meetings.

He will also attend a financial summit of the Group of 20 (G20) in Pittsburgh, scheduled for Sept. 24-25.

Hu and his Turkmen counterpart Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov met in New York on Monday and discussed the development of friendly and cooperative ties between the two nations, as well as issues of common concern.

Hu said relations between the two countries were enjoying excellent momentum, with fruitful cooperation in economic, energy, humanities and other fields amid frequent high-level exchanges and steadily strengthening political trust between the two countries.

The two sides supported each other on major issues of mutual concern and cooperated soundly in multilateral frameworks, such as the United Nations, with positive contributions to the promotion of regional and world peace and development, he said.

At the meeting, the Chinese president put forward a five-point proposal on furthering relations between China and Turkmenistan.

Hu also met his Bolivian counterpart, Evo Morales, on Monday and reached consensus with him on further developing the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries.

At his meeting with Morales, Hu said that, thanks to joint efforts by both sides, the two countries had made positive progress in bilateral relations in recent years, and cooperation in fields such as the economy and trade, culture, education, science and technology and sports had been fruitful.

The Chinese president also put forward a four-point proposal for the further development of China-Bolivia relations.

Hu also discussed the development of bilateral ties with French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Hu said his meeting with Sarkozy during the G20 summit in London in April helped bring the China-France relationship back on the track of healthy development, and a good momentum had appeared recently in bilateral relations, marked by increased high-level exchanges and a resumption of pragmatic cooperation in a variety of fields.

All these had helped to enhance political mutual trust and boost coordination and cooperation between China and France in various areas, said the Chinese president.

China attached great importance to its relations with France, Hu said. Maintaining and developing a good China-France relationship was not only conducive to the fundamental interests of both countries, but also to world peace, stability and prosperity.

This year marked the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. China was ready to work with the French side to review the historical experience of bilateral relations, and promote a healthy and steady development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations.

For his part, Sarkozy said he was pleased to see the rapid development of bilateral ties, and believed the French-Chinese relationship was progressing smoothly.

Sarkozy stressed that the French-Chinese comprehensive strategic partnership was important to France, and France was willing to join hands with China to build a bright future for their bilateral relations.

Sarkozy said France would actively participate in the Shanghai Expo, scheduled to open in May 2010, and wished the Expo a success.

During the talks, Hu said China had undertaken a series of measures to tackle the global financial crisis and these had produced tangible results. China was confident of overcoming the difficulties and ensuring a steady and rapid growth of the Chinese economy.

With the Chinese economy beginning to stabilize and recover, there would be more opportunities and more room for economic and trade cooperation between China and France, Hu said.

Sarkozy said China had made important contributions to global economic growth and had honored all the commitments it made at the G20 summit in London. China was an important force in promoting the world economy's recovery and development, he said.

On the issue of climate change, Hu said China had adopted policies and measures to deal with climate change. It also had formulated and carried out a national plan in that regard, and had scored preliminary achievements in energy-saving and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

China was ready to continue to contribute to efforts against climate change, and to play a positive and constructive role in ensuring that the Copenhagen conference in December would be a success, he said.

Hu and Sarkozy also exchanged views on reforming the world monetary system and other issues.

On Monday evening, Hu met Japan's new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama to discuss China-Japan ties and other issues of common concern. Both leaders agreed to further advance bilateral relations.

"I wish and believe that, during the tenure of Prime Minister Hatoyama, China-Japan relations will enter a new stage of more active growth and usher in a period of greater opportunity," Hu said.

Hu congratulated Hatoyama on his election victory, speaking highly of the active role the Japanese leader had played in improving and expanding China-Japan relations.

China and Japan, Hu said, were friendly neighbors separated only by a narrow strip of water. He pointed out that both nations were important countries in Asia and the world.

Hu noted that the China-Japan relationship was among each country's most important bilateral ties. He said cooperation and bilateral exchanges between China and Japan had reached unprecedented levels in a variety of fields since the two countries normalized relations 37 years ago.

Leaders of the two countries, Hu said, had maintained close exchanges of visits and contacts, especially since 2006, when they decided to build a mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests.

"This was the first time that the two sides began positioning and planning bilateral relations at a strategic level," Hu said. The improvement and development of bilateral relations had not only brought major benefits to China and Japan, it also had contributed positively to peace, stability and prosperity in Asia and the world, Hu said.

China had always viewed and developed China-Japan relations from a strategic and long-term perspective. Hu said China would continue to pursue its policy of China-Japan friendship and work with Japan to realize the goal of peaceful coexistence, friendship for all generations, mutually beneficial cooperation and common development.

Hu, noting that the world was currently undergoing complicated and profound changes, said China and Japan were sharing additional common interests and challenges.

"Bilateral relations are facing major opportunities for development at higher levels and in greater space," Hu said.

He said China was ready to work with Japan to advance their mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests in a sustained and extensive way.

Hu put forward five propositions on developing China-Japan relations, including the enhancement of high-level communications, cooperation on Asian affairs, promoting trade and economic cooperation, improving friendship, and properly dealing with the differences.

The issues of history and Taiwan were two political concerns in China-Japan relations, Hu said. He hoped Japan could properly handle the two issues with the general bilateral relations in mind.

For his part, Hatoyama agreed with Hu's remarks. He congratulated China on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, saying the country's development had made great contributions to world peace and the global economy.

Hatoyama said the Japanese government and people wanted to develop friendly relations with China. Japan would work to strengthen high-level communications, enhance mutual understanding and trust, deepen trade and cooperation with China in all fields, and foster better understanding between the two peoples, he said.

Hatoyama said the Japanese government would stick to the Aug. 15, 1995 statement by former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama on the history issue, in which Murayama made an apology for Japanese crimes before and during the war and expressed deep remorse and stressed the need for Japan to "convey to younger generations the horror of war" so that it would never repeat the mistake.

Hatoyama also pledged that his government would continue to abide by the Japan-China joint declaration on the Taiwan issue.

This was the first meeting between the two leaders since Hatoyama was elected Japan's prime minister on Sept. 16. They also exchanged views on climate change and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

President Hu will attend a UN climate change summit in New York on Tuesday, address the general debate of the 64th Session of the UN General Assembly Wednesday, and participate in a Security Council summit on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament on Thursday, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry officials.

Following the UN meetings, President Hu will fly to Pittsburgh for the G20 summit from Sept. 24-25.

(Xinhua News Agency September 22, 2009)