President wishes counterpart a speedy recovery after his coronavirus infection

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of sympathy to Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih over his COVID-19 infection and wished him a speedy recovery.

In the message, Xi said China and the Maldives have stood in solidarity and joined hands in fighting the pandemic, and Beijing will continue to help the nation contain the virus.

The president said he highly values the bilateral relationship, and is willing to work with Solih to promote the steady growth of bilateral ties and bring more benefits to the two countries and two peoples.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. The two countries have enjoyed mutual understanding and respect since the establishment of their diplomatic ties in 1972.

In a phone conversation with Solih in July, Xi pledged more aid, including vaccines, to the Maldives, and the two leaders agreed to scale up cooperation in jointly building the Belt and Road.

Earlier this month, while meeting with visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Jan 8, Solih said his country and China reached important consensus last year on consolidating the ties and broadening pragmatic cooperation between the two countries.

The president thanked China for its tremendous contribution to his country's socioeconomic development, the firm support to his country's vaccination campaign against COVID-19, and its reduction and suspension of the Maldives' debt within the framework of G20.

The Maldives firmly upholds the one-China policy, and their sound bilateral ties and solid mutual trust are rooted in the long and traditional friendship and adherence to the principles of sovereign equality and mutual respect, the president stressed.

By Thursday, according to data of the World Health Organization, the Maldives had reported 122,777 COVID-19 cases and 271 deaths.