BEIJING, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday sent a congratulatory message to the opening of the 15th session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)'s Islamic Summit Conference in Banjul, capital of The Gambia.

Xi pointed out that the OIC is a symbol of the unity and independence of Islamic countries, and has made important contributions to strengthening cooperation among Islamic countries as well as safeguarding international fairness and justice.

China and Islamic countries are good friends and partners with a long history of friendship, he said, noting that in recent years, China and Islamic countries have supported each other on issues concerning each other's core interests and major concerns, achieved fruitful results in practical cooperation, and continuously upgraded their friendly relations, setting a good example of the South-South cooperation.

China stands ready to keep on working with Islamic countries to continue traditional friendship, enhance political mutual trust, deepen practical cooperation, expand exchanges among civilizations, jointly implement the Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative and Global Civilization Initiative, and make greater contribution to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, he said.