China ready to continue friendly legislative exchanges with Ireland: senior official

China's National People's Congress (NPC) stands ready to continue friendly exchanges with the Irish parliament, jointly create a legal environment conducive to promoting bilateral cooperation, and advance the development of China-Ireland relations, Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, has said.

Li, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the statement during a visit to Ireland from Wednesday to Saturday with a Chinese delegation.

During his stay in the Irish capital Dublin, Li held separate talks with Verona Murphy, Ceann Comhairle (speaker) of Dail, the lower house of the Irish parliament, and Maria Byrne, Leas-Chathaoirleach (deputy chairperson) of Seanad, the upper house. He also held discussions with teachers and students from the Confucius Institute at University College Dublin.

Li said that the mutually beneficial strategic partnership between China and Ireland continues to develop in a healthy and sustainable manner under the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Irish President Michael D. Higgins.

Noting that the world is undergoing significant and accelerating changes, Li called on both sides to strengthen political mutual trust, maintain open cooperation, and deepen exchanges in such areas as trade, science and technology, education, culture, and local affairs to achieve shared development and prosperity.

The Irish side said the government highly values developing relations with China, adheres to the one-China policy, supports open and free trade, and is willing to strengthen exchanges between the legislative bodies, contributing to mutual benefits and win-win cooperation between Ireland and China.