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On June 15 local time, Chinese President Hu Jintao and his wife Liu Yongqing met with the Danish royal couple, Queen Margrethe II and the Prince Consort, in Copenhagen. Both sides held cordial and friendly talks.
During the meeting, Hu spoke highly of the contributions made by the queen and the royal court as a whole to the enhancement of China-Denmark friendship. Although China and Denmark are geographically distant, the two peoples enjoy a long history of friendly exchanges, said Hu. Denmark is among the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, Hu said, noting that the queen, who paid an official visit to China 33 years ago, is the first head of state from the Nordic countries to visit China, constituting an important chapter in the history of China-Denmark exchanges. In 2008, the two countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership, pushing bilateral relations to a new stage, said Hu.
China, he said, attaches great importance to its ties with Denmark and is ready to expand friendly exchanges and cooperation on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit so as to further advance the China-Denmark comprehensive strategic partnership.
Cultural exchanges are an important bond for the two peoples to deepen understanding of each other and have been active in recent years, Hu said, expressing hope that the two sides will join hands to further deepen their exchanges in the cultural sector.
The Queen and the Prince Consort recalled their visit to China back in 1979, saying that China has made tremendous progress and remarkable achievements in development ever since then. The relationship between Denmark and China has also come a long way and maintained a good momentum of development, especially after the two countries established the comprehensive strategic partnership in 2008, they said. The Danish people warmly welcome and look forward to Hu's visit. The Queen and the Prince Consort believed Hu's visit would help strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries in trade and economy and sustainable development, among others and push forward the ties.
Noting that China has a long history and rich culture, the royal couple voiced hope that the Danish and Chinese peoples would carry out more exchanges so as to promote mutual understanding and friendship between them.
After the meeting, Hu and his wife Liu Yongqing, accompanied by the Danish royal couple, viewed the Copenhagen harbor to see the city's efforts at green growth and listened to the introduction to Denmark's environmental protection, renewable energy and new energy development.
In the evening, President Hu attended a welcome banquet held by Queen Margrethe II.
Wang Qishan, Ling Jihua, Wang Huning and Dai Bingguo attended the relevant activities.
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