Xi exchanges congratulatory messages with Ruto

President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that China and Kenya have set a good example of China-Africa cooperation by conducting frequent high-level exchanges, deepening political mutual trust and achieving fruitful results in jointly building the Belt and Road in recent years.

Xi made the remarks as he exchanged congratulatory messages with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto on the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Over the past decades, China and Kenya, always standing shoulder to shoulder and joining hands for development, have become good friends who trust each other politically and are good partners of win-win cooperation in economy, he said.

Xi said that China-Kenya cooperation has not only benefited the two peoples, but also set the pace for China-Africa cooperation.

Noting that China highly values developing relations with Kenya, Xi said he will work with Ruto to make the 60th anniversary a new starting point and embark on a road toward cooperation with distinctive characteristics as the two countries respectively pursue national rejuvenation.

Xi also expressed readiness to continuously enrich the two countries' comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and join hands to build a closer China-Kenya community with a shared future in the new era.

Ruto said that China and Kenya have respected and assisted each other to jointly cope with changes in the international situation over the past 60 years. Rich achievements have been made in economic cooperation and cultural exchanges between the two countries, he said.

The Kenyan president, who attended the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing in October, said his country will work with China to implement the outcomes of this forum as well as that of the China-Africa Leaders' Dialogue held in Johannesburg, South Africa in August.

By doing so, it is expected that the China-Kenya relationship will usher in a future of continuous development, prosperity and friendship as well as common progress, he said.

China is Kenya's largest trading partner with the trade volume exceeding $8.5 billion last year, a year-on-year increase of 22.9 percent. China mainly exports electronic products, garments and textiles to Kenya and imports minerals and agricultural products from the Eastern African nation, according to the Foreign Ministry.