China stands ready to promote new, greater development of partnership with Nepal: Xi

China stands ready to promote new and greater development of its strategic cooperative partnership with Nepal, according to Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday.

Meeting with visiting Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in Beijing, Xi expressed appreciation for Oli's firm commitment to promoting China-Nepal friendship.

"Mr. Prime Minister, you are an old friend of the Chinese people, and have been committed to the cause of China-Nepal friendship and actively supporting China-Nepal cooperation in joint construction of the Belt and Road, which I deeply appreciate," Xi said.

The Chinese president said that China and Nepal are good neighbors, good friends and good partners connected by mountains and rivers. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 69 years ago, the two countries have treated each other with sincerity, mutual respect and support, and bilateral relations have maintained sound and steady development, he said.

"Next year will mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Nepal. The Chinese side is willing to work with the Nepali side to stay true to the original aspiration of establishing diplomatic relations, consolidate traditional friendship, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and promote new and greater development of a China-Nepal strategic cooperative partnership featuring ever-lasting friendship for development and prosperity," said the Chinese president.

For his part, Oli said that "there is no issue, only friendship between Nepal and China," and that the two countries' cooperative relations are "as tall as the Himalayas."

"We are inspired by the astonishing achievements made by China after the founding of the People's Republic of China under the Communist Party of China," said the Nepali prime minister.

Calling Xi a "dynamic leader of our time", Oli said the Chinese president is a "true friend of Nepal."

China stands ready to promote new, greater development of partnership with Nepal: Xi

China stands ready to promote new, greater development of partnership with Nepal: Xi

China stands ready to promote new, greater development of partnership with Nepal: Xi

China stands ready to promote new, greater development of partnership with Nepal: Xi

A China Pavilion officially opened on Monday at the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, highlighting China's decades-long efforts and achievements in combating desertification.

Covering more than 600 square meters, the China Pavilion is the second-largest national pavilion at the event. Its exhibition, themed "Cross-Century Green Great Wall, China's Restoration in Action," showcases the nation's battle against desertification, particularly through the Three-North Shelter Forest Program, a major national initiative aimed at reversing land desertification in its north, northwest and northeast regions by surrounding desert lands with trees and vegetation.

Addressing the opening ceremony, UNCCD Deputy Executive Secretary Andrea Meza Murillo praised China's significant contributions to curbing its desertification, including controlling the expansion of the Taklimakan Desert in west China, the world's second-largest shifting sand desert.

She emphasized that effective policies, community and local government involvement, as well as innovation and technology, are key components of China's success.

"The example of what the government of China is doing in restoring land, in combating desertification, means a lot to humanity. It is inspiring and remarkable to see that China has already achieved land degradation neutrality ahead of time by restoring 50 percent of curable degraded sandy land. This is amazing. It's clear that we need good leadership, good policies, engagement of the society, engagement of national governments. It's really good to see this engagement, and of course, innovation is technology, it's traditional knowledge, and this is what we are seeing in the China experience," said Murillo.

COP16, held from Dec. 2 to 13 under the theme "Our Land. Our Future," is the largest UN land-focused conference to date and the first UNCCD COP in the Middle East and North Africa.

China Pavilion opens at UN conference on desertification held in Riyadh