Wang says ties should reflect long-term view

China and the Philippines should strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen practical cooperation and properly deal with differences, Vice-President Wang Qishan told Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alan Peter Cayetano in Beijing on Friday.

The two sides should continue meeting halfway, plan for their relations from a strategic and long-term view, and fully implement the consensus reached by the two heads of state, Wang said.

Cayetano, who arrived in China on Wednesday, is visiting until Sunday, which makes him the first foreign guest Wang has met in public since he assumed the post of vice-president.

The diplomat's China trip is also intended to pave the way for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's visit in April to attend the Boao Forum for Asia annual conference in Hainan province.

Wang said that the Philippines is a traditional friendly neighbor of China, and under the common care of and guidance by President Xi Jinping and Duterte, ties have been consolidated and deepened on a consistent basis, and are developing and improving steadily.

The two neighbors should constantly promote the friendly feelings between the two peoples and jointly promote the building of a closer community with a shared future for China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Wang added.

Cayetano said the Philippines is ready to work with China to promote the sustained and in-depth development of bilateral relations.

Last year, the nations' bilateral trade exceeded $50 billion. China became the top trade partner of the Philippines, and its investment in the Philippines achieved a year-on-year increase of 67 percent.

As part of reinforced bilateral exchanges and interactions, China imported a total of around 1 million metric tons of tropical fruit from the country last year.

Cayetano congratulated Wang on the success of China's recently concluded two sessions.

Wang said the country will strive to realize the Chinese Dream of achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.