The president of Timor-Leste is in Beijing on the first state visit to China by any Timorese leader, Xinhua reports. China was the first country to establish diplomatic relations with the Portuguese-speaking Southeast Asian nation back in 2002, the same year it gained independence from Indonesia.
José Ramos-Horta, who most recently took over Timor-Leste’s presidency in 2022, is using his four day visit to meet with both President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang and sign a number of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of agriculture, green development, digital economy and air transportation. Last year, the two countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership last September – described as “a historic leap forward” in bilateral relations.
During one of their meetings this week, Xi noted that China was willing to ramp up bilateral and tripartite cooperation with Timor-Leste within the frameworks of Forum Macao, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – which is helping implement the new food programme aimed at helping Timorese impacted by El Niño.
[See more: High-level meetings reaffirm elevated Chinese-Timorese ties]
In Premier Li Qiang’s meeting with Ramos-Horta on Sunday, Li pledged to support Timor-Leste in pursuing a development path suited to its own national conditions. He indicated China’s willingness to import more quality products from the country and encourage more Chinese investment.
Li also noted that China would support Timor-Leste’s early accession to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Ramos-Horta, meanwhile, said that Timor-Leste highly appreciated China’s important role in international and regional affairs, respects the one-China principle, and would welcome more Chinese enterprises’ investment in Timor-Leste. Ramos-Horta departs the country tomorrow for Vietnam.
