President also has talks on phone with counterparts from Sierra Leone, DRC China stands ready to continue to work with the International Olympic
Committee to support the Tokyo Olympics and strengthen vaccine
cooperation with it to jointly ensure that athletes can safely
participate in the Games, President Xi Jinping said on Friday. Xi made the remark in a telephone conversation with IOC President
Thomas Bach. He praised the IOC's efforts to promote the robust
development of the Olympic Games and fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and
said it has provided positive energy to global cooperation against the
virus. Xi said China has been steadily conducting preparatory work for hosting the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. He assured the IOC president that China is fully confident of holding
a successful Games as scheduled and it is willing to work along with
the IOC as well as the international community to ensure these will be
safe and excellent events. Bach congratulated China on its great achievements in various fields,
saying that it has played an important role in leading global
anti-pandemic cooperation and economic recovery. The IOC considers
collaboration with China as greatly important and wants to intensify
vaccine cooperation with it, he added. He reaffirmed that the IOC opposes politicizing the Olympic Games and
fully supports China hosting the Games on schedule. Bach said he is
confident that the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will
show the world an example of fighting the pandemic, promote the
development of winter sports and make significant contributions to the
Olympics. Also on Friday, Xi had telephone conversations with Felix Tshisekedi,
president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Julius Maada
Bio, president of Sierra Leone. While speaking with Tshisekedi, Xi said that it is China's firm
strategic choice to strengthen solidarity and cooperation with African
countries. Hailing their bilateral ties, Xi said China supports the DRC in
assuming the rotating presidency of the African Union, and is willing to
strengthen communication and coordination with it to deepen
China-Africa cooperation in the fields of free trade zone construction,
public health, peace and security, and climate change. China supports the African continent in implementing the United
Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and strives to push for
the international community to support African development, he added. Tshisekedi said his country upholds the one-China policy and remains
committed to friendship with China. He thanked China for its
anti-pandemic aid and vaccines to African countries and said the African
side wants to secure new development in Africa-China relations and in
the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. In his phone talks with Bio, Xi underlined the need for China and
Sierra Leone to carry on their traditional friendship, expand mutually
beneficial cooperation and promote common development as they celebrate
the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year. Bio called China a really good friend of Sierra Leone and the African
people, and said his country firmly pursues the one-China policy and
resolutely supports China in safeguarding its sovereignty, security and
territorial integrity.
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