On the afternoon of March 25, Chinese President Xi Jinping had a telephone conversation with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Xi Jinping pointed out that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level between China and the UK.
Over the past half century, China-UK relations have seen ups and downs, but on the whole they have continued to develop.
The trade volume between the two countries has increased from US$300 million to US$100 billion, and the stock of two-way investment has risen from almost zero to US$50 billion.
Last year, China-UK trade reached a new high, and Chinese investment in the UK more than tripled.
British-funded enterprises have actively participated in China's reform and opening up.
London has become the world's largest offshore RMB trading center.
The two countries have coordinated and cooperated in global development and climate change, and made positive contributions to addressing the common challenges of mankind.
Xi Jinping pointed out that China and the UK have different conditions and different development paths.
The two sides should focus on the strategy and the long-term, adhere to mutual respect, strengthen dialogue and exchanges, and expand mutually beneficial cooperation with an open and inclusive mentality.
The Chinese side is willing to conduct dialogue and cooperation with the British side in a candid, open and inclusive manner. It is hoped that the British side will view China and China-UK relations in an objective and fair manner, and work with the Chinese side to promote the continuous development of bilateral relations.
Johnson said that UK-China relations are very important.
The UK-China trade has grown rapidly, and the UK has more Chinese students than any other European country. The UK is proud of this.
Both the UK and China are permanent members of the UN Security Council. They share common interests on many issues and can cooperate on many things.
The UK side is willing to conduct candid dialogues with the Chinese side, strengthen exchanges and cooperation, expand economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, and deepen communication and coordination on global issues such as climate change and biodiversity as well as regional hotspot issues.
The leaders of the two countries also exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine.
Xi Jinping expounded on China's principled position, stressing that the international community should really encourage peace and promote talks, create conditions for a political settlement of the Ukrainian issue, and promote an early return to peace in Ukraine.
China is willing to continue to play a constructive role in this regard.