China ready to promote high-quality development of China-Uzbekistan relations: Xi

China is ready to work with Uzbekistan to promote the high-quality development of China-Uzbekistan relations with the future of the country and the well-being of its people in mind, said Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Kazakh capital Astana on Wednesday.

Xi made the remarks during a meeting with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev ahead of the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana.

Calling Mirziyoyev an "old friend", Xi recalled the Uzbek president's fruitful state visit to China earlier this year, saying the development of bilateral ties has entered a new stage.

"My old friend, it's a great pleasure to meet you again after six months. In January of this year, you paid a successful state visit to China, during which we jointly decided to elevate the China-Uzbekistan relationship to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era and to build a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future from a higher starting point. The development of bilateral relations has ushered in a new stage," said Xi.

Pointing out that the two countries share the grand yet simple goal of delivering a better life to their people, Xi said China is ready to work with Uzbekistan to promote the high-quality development of bilateral relations.

"This year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. We are speeding up efforts to promote Chinese modernization, and your country is also comprehensively advancing the 'Uzbekistan-2030' strategy. Our goal, both grand and simple, is about delivering a better life for the people. With the country's future and the people's well-being in mind, we are ready to work with Uzbekistan to advance the high-quality development of bilateral ties," said Xi.

Mirziyoyev spoke highly of China's development under Xi's leadership, and expressed his country's willingness to discuss future cooperation with China.

"Your Excellency Mr. President, under your wise and visionary leadership, China has successfully coped with today's challenges and threats, and has continued to make steady progress in technology, science and innovation. Under your leadership, China has become a world's leading power with strong and diversified economy. As a true friend, we are glad to see that on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the hard-working and friendly Chinese people are moving fast to realize their dreams, and Uzbekistan is willing to join hands with China to discuss future bilateral cooperation," said Mirziyoyev.

China ready to promote high-quality development of China-Uzbekistan relations: Xi

China ready to promote high-quality development of China-Uzbekistan relations: Xi

China ready to promote high-quality development of China-Uzbekistan relations: Xi

Rescue operations are in full swing on Saturday after a dike breach in central China's Hunan Province on Friday afternoon.

A dike of the Dongting Lake burst in Tuanzhou Township, Yueyang City's Huarong County Friday afternoon, causing flooding in the area. All the local people affected have been safely evacuated.

Rescue forces have been working tirelessly, using heavy machinery to place stones along both ends of the dike to seal the gap. The work was still in progress as of 18:00 on Saturday.

"We are using a combination of bidirectional blocking and stone dumping by ships to close the breach. This is a massive task, requiring about 100,000 cubic meters of materials to seal and restore the dike. We will resolutely follow the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping and make every effort to carry out rescue operations to effectively protect the lives and property of the people," said Ji Zhigang, director of the Water Resources Bureau of Huarong County.

A total of 5,755 affected residents have been evacuated in the first time by more than 2,300 rescuers. The residents received 5,000 family emergency kits from the disaster relief, emergency management, and material reserve authorities, and have been transfered to resettlement sites equipped with essential supplies.

"We have food and drink here, such as eight-ingredient porridge, egg cakes, and mineral water. We arrived at the resettlement point at 5:00 in the morning," said an evacuated resident named Bai Yunlan.

Local authorities have also deployed more than 3,000 personnel to reinforce a dike about nine kilometers away from the broken one.

The Ministry of Water Resources has dispatched an expert team to help managing the crisis, and held a flood prevention meeting on Saturday to analyze current situation.

Rescue operations, relief efforts in full swing after Dongting dike breach