British foreign secretary to visit China

BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom David Lammy will pay an official visit to China from Oct. 18 to 19, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning announced on Thursday.

The visit comes at the invitation of Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and minister of foreign affairs, Mao said.

In response to a related query, the spokesperson told a press briefing that both China and the UK are permanent members of the UN Security Council and major economies in the world. The long-term and stable development of bilateral relations is in the common interests of both sides, and is also conducive to the unity of the international community in dealing with global challenges and promoting world peace and development.

This marks the first visit to China by a cabinet minister of the new British government, Mao noted, adding that the two sides will focus on implementing the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries during the phone talks in August, and have in-depth communication on enhancing strategic mutual trust and strengthening dialogue and cooperation in various fields.

China is ready to work with the UK as a partner, uphold openness and cooperation, promote mutual benefit and win-win results, and foster the steady and long-term development of China-UK relations, Mao added.