BEIJING — Premier Li Keqiang on Sept 19 talked over phone with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on bilateral ties.

In the phone call, Premier Li said China and Vietnam are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers. General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Xi Jinping and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong communicate frequently, strongly promoting the development of bilateral relations.

He said the Chinese side is willing to strengthen exchanges at all levels with the Vietnamese side and deepen pragmatic cooperation in various fields. This will not only benefit peoples of the two countries, but also be conducive to maintaining regional peace and stability, to boosting common development and prosperity.

Premier Li said that at present, the world economic recovery is sluggish, and various uncertainties and complex factors are intertwined. Affected by unexpected factors, the Chinese economy is withstanding downward pressure, making efforts to stabilize employment and prices and keeping major economic indicators within an appropriate range and showing an overall recovery trend.

Premier Li said that China is glad to see the steady growth of Vietnam's economy, which is conducive to the stability of the industrial and supply chains in East Asia.

He added that China is ready to work with Vietnam to give full play to the complementary advantages of their industries, expand economic and trade cooperation, ensure smooth customs clearance at border crossings, import more marketable high-quality agricultural products from Vietnam, welcome Vietnamese students who are willing to go back to China on the premise of good epidemic prevention and increase direct flights between the two countries.

Premier Li stressed that peace and stability in the South China Sea are in the common interests of all parties.

The Chinese side, Premier Li said, is ready to work with ASEAN countries to take the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea as an opportunity to strive for an early agreement on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea by giving full play to the wisdom of all parties, focusing on the overall interests, promoting cooperation and managing differences, so as to build the South China Sea into a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation.

For his part, the Vietnamese prime minister said that consolidating and developing the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership is a top priority in Vietnam's foreign policy.

The Vietnamese side stands ready to maintain regular high-level exchanges with the Chinese side, strengthen strategic coordination, properly handle differences, and continuously deepen bilateral cooperation in such key fields as investment and trade, customs clearance, culture and people-to-people exchanges, so as to bring more positive results to bilateral relations, he said.

State Councilor and Secretary-General of the State Council Xiao Jie attended the event.