Premier Li Keqiang met with Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze on July 1 in Dalian, Northeast China’s Liaoning province.

China-Georgia relations have witnessed healthy and stable development on the basis of mutual respect and equality, Premier Li said, and noted that Georgia was the first country in Eurasia to establish a free trade arrangement with China.

He also said China is willing to align its development strategy with Georgia’s and promote the Belt and Road cooperation on the principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration while making good use of Georgia’s geographic position.

China would like to expand mutual investment based on equality and mutual benefit, and strengthen interconnection and infrastructure construction abiding by openness, transparency and equal competition, the Premier added.

China would also like to increase people-to-people and cultural exchanges to promote mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples, Premier Li said.

Bakhtadze sent his congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Georgia and China have maintained close high-level exchanges and established a solid foundation of political trust, he said, adding that Georgia actively supports the joint construction of the Belt and Road and welcomes Chinese enterprises to expand their investment in Georgia.

Georgia would like to expand bilateral trade and promote closer people-to-people and cultural cooperation between the two countries to achieve win-win results, Bakhtadze said.

State Councilors Wang Yi and Xiao Jie, and He Lifeng, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, also attended the meeting.