BEIJING - The Chinese government attaches great importance to advancing the rule of law, and China is willing to have more judicial cooperation with other countries, according to President Xi Jinping.

Xi made the remarks in a letter of congratulation to the 22nd annual conference and general meeting of the International Association of Prosecutors, which opened Monday morning in Beijing.

"As representatives of the public interest, prosecutors shoulder important responsibilities," Xi said.

He said the annual conference, focusing on prosecution in the public interest and building a safe, fair, harmonious and rule-of-law society, holds significance to the progress of rule of law in countries involved.

Xi stressed the Chinese government attaches great importance to the rule of law and has continuously pushed forward legislation in a scientific way, with strict law-enforcement, judicial justice and law compliance by all citizens.

"China works to ensure the country, the government and society are all under the rule of law," the president said.

Xi said Chinese procuratorates are important players in protecting the national and public interest, as they have the functions of punishing and preventing crime and supervising litigation.

Xi encouraged prosecutors from all around the world to share their experience in protecting the public interest and advancing the rule of law to deepen judicial cooperation.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Chinese top legislator Zhang Dejiang said that China's national legislature has revised civil and administrative procedure laws to allow prosecutors to institute public interest litigation.

"China has been actively promoting international and regional judicial cooperation, joined international conventions and signed bilateral judicial assistance and extradition treaties," said Zhang, chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee.

He said China has delivered its commitments in international conventions and played an important role in punishing international crime and developing a global governance based on democracy and rule-of-law.

He said all countries should learn from and support each other to establish a more reliable, practical and efficient international judicial cooperation system.

Zhang praised the International Association of Prosecutors for championing international judicial cooperation and their commitment to making universal the rule-of-law, fairness and justice, as well as respect for human rights.

"Judicial institutions, particularly procuratorates, have a shared mission to combat crime, protect human rights, punish corruption and safeguard justice," Zhang said.

He expressed the hope that all participants at the meeting would have in-depth discussions on how to foster a judicial guarantee for the development of their countries, ranging from combating crime, resolving disputes and protecting public interest to fostering an orderly, rule-of-law environment.