Luanda - The ambassador of the Republic of China to Angola, Zhang Bin, said Friday in Luanda that the two countries are willing to take cooperation to new levels due to the positive results it has produced.
Zhang Bin, who was speaking at a press conference to take stock of Angolan President João Lourenço's visit to China, said cooperation between the two countries over the years has brought real results.
The diplomat hailed the gains of President João Lourenço's visit, which has made it possible to boost cooperation to a Global Strategic Partnership and make it more comprehensive.
Zhang Bin emphasized that in this new stage, alongside economic and commercial cooperation, intercultural and interpersonal cooperation will be more open.
The diplomat, who was coy on the figures, said Angola's debt to China is transparent, having emphasized the need for any country that wants to develop to take on debt in order to make investments.
However, he said that the Chinese side has often taken into account the difficulties of its partners and, together, sought ways to overcome the constraints.
On mission in Angola since February this year, Ambassador Zhang Bin emphasized the principle of non-interference and the free choice of cooperation partners as the basis of his country's relations with other states.
He believes that Angola is free to deepen its cooperation with the United States of America or any other country, and that his country does not feel uncomfortable.
The diplomat argued that the choice of a cooperation partner is the right of each state, in this case Angola, and no one should interfere and that China is happy that other major nations are increasing their investments for the development of the African continent.
He stressed that, during the visit, the two statesmen had emphasized the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of each state.
Touching on the private role in cooperation, the diplomat said that around 2 billion dollars in direct Chinese investment in Angola comes from the private sector or private companies.
As a result, the diplomat said, nearly 70 percent of Chinese direct investment is made by private companies.
For the diplomat, his country's companies must increase the proportion of local workers, even though the technical issue is often a determining factor, adding that technical and vocational training will be one of the important steps to be taken in the near future.
He added that a large number of similar institutions have already expressed their intention to set up in Angola to encourage the training of national staff.
The diplomat said his nation attaches great importance to the quality of the projects carried out within the framework of cooperation, above all to avoid "external forces" trying to take advantage of this to slander the friendly relations between China and Africa.
"That doesn't mean that there can't often be one or two problems, which are of their own making, but the most important thing is to resolve these specific issues," he argued.
With regard to possible violations of Angolan labor laws, which may be committed by Chinese companies, the diplomat stressed that his country's authorities support the actions of local governments to punish crimes and violations on their part. SC/TED/AMP
