Chinese, Costa Rican FMs meet on sidelines of UNGA session

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) meets with Costa Rican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship Arnoldo Andre Tinoco on the sidelines of the ongoing 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the United States, Sept. 24, 2022. [Photo by Liu Jie/Xinhua]

NEW YORK, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met here with Costa Rican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship Arnoldo Andre Tinoco on Saturday on the sidelines of the ongoing 77th session of the UN General Assembly.

Costa Rica is a friend country to China in Central America, Wang said, adding that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, bilateral relations have been advanced to a new level, he noted, adding that China and Costa Rica always understand each other and treat each other as equals.

China appreciates the new Costa Rican government for reiterating its firm commitment to the one-China principle and for not allowing any form of "Taiwan independence" moves in the country, which has strongly consolidated the political foundation of bilateral relations, Wang said.

China will also continue to stand with Costa Rica, support Costa Rica's legitimate demand to safeguard sovereignty, independence and development interests, and open up new prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation between the two sides through high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, he added.

Wang welcomed Costa Rica to participate in the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Global Security Initiative (GSI), so as to expand international cooperation platforms.

For his part, Andre said Costa Rica firmly abides by the one-China principle, and highly appreciates and is ready to participate in the GDI and the GSI. He also thanked China for supporting Costa Rica's combat against the COVID-19 pandemic and floods,

Noting that Costa Rica-China relations have a sound momentum of development, he said that the new Costa Rican government places high importance on bilateral relations and looks forward to deepening practical cooperation and accelerating key infrastructure cooperation projects on the basis of a free trade agreement, so as to inject new impetus to bilateral relations.