Visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met on Tuesday with Damdin Demberel, speaker of Mongolia's State Great Hural, or parliament, to discuss ways to promote bilateral ties.

Wen said Mongolia was among the first countries to establish diplomatic ties with New China and it has steadfastly supported China on issues concerning its core interests.

China highly values its relations with Mongolia and sees the relations as a foreign policy priority, Wen said.

The Chinese premier said China is ready to deepen mutual political trust, expand mutually beneficial cooperation and strengthen cultural exchanges so as to advance the good-neighborly partnership of mutual trust between the two countries.

China's National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) have maintained good exchanges and cooperation with the Mongolian State Great Hural, Wen said.

Wen hoped the legislative bodies of the two countries would maintain close and friendly exchanges and make new contributions to the development of China-Mongolia relations.

Demberel spoke highly of China's development and said Mongolia is committed to developing its relations with China, adding that Mongolia wants to expand exchanges and cooperation with China.

All members of the State Great Hural have visited China, Demberel noted, adding that it is ready to have more exchanges with the NPC and the CPPCC.