Full coverage: Xi Visits Czech Republic, Attends Nuclear Security Summit

BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping returned home Saturday after wrapping up a state visit to the Czech Republic and attending the the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington.

The five-day tour has again testified to China's continued efforts to promote mutually beneficial cooperation and reaffirmed China's firm commitment to safeguarding global nuclear security.

UPGRADING OF SINO-CZECH TIES

Xi's visit to the Czech Republic is the first state visit by a Chinese president in 67 years since the two countries established diplomatic ties, and also Xi's first state visit to a CEE country since he took office, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

The Czech Republic has become an important partner of China in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), and one of the most active European countries keen on promoting relations with China.

The historic visit will be seen as "a milestone" in Sino-Czech relations and it has given impetus to cooperation between China and Europe, said Wang.

The two countries have agreed to elevate their bilateral relations to a strategic partnership, which Wang referred to as the most significant political achievement of Xi's Czech Republic visit.

Meanwhile, the two sides agreed to further strengthen the synergy of bilateral development strategies within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Located at the heart of the European continent and with a solid foundation of industries, the Czech Republic is a key nation along the route of the Silk Road Economic Belt, Wang said, adding that it has become "a front-runner in China-CEE cooperation."

The two sides also signed an agreement on direct flights, an important start for a comprehensive cooperation in transportation, manufacturing and other fields.

The Chinese president has made several proposals on strategic cooperation between the two countries, which have received positive responses from the Czech side, Wang said.

The Czech side stands ready to make full-fledged participation in the China-CEE cooperation and to push China-Europe relations forward, making the Czech Republic a haven as well as a gateway for cooperation between China and Europe, the Chinese foreign minister said.

As many as 10 intergovernmental documents and 15 business deals have been clinched in Xi's three-day visit to the European country, Wang said, adding that those deals touch upon cooperation on infrastructure, automobile manufacturing, finance, nuclear energy, medicine and health, as well as industrial parks.

Both countries are facing economic restructuring and highly complementary in each other's industries, Wang said.

Moreover, the Chinese president's visit is not all about politics, as interesting and heart-warming sidelights also played a big part.

The Chinese president, who is an enthusiastic sport fan, met with budding football players and ice-hockey players from both countries, Wang said.

Xi, in company of his Czech counterpart Milos Zeman, also planted a ginkgo sapling, which is symbolic of the friendship between the two countries, Wang added.

SAFEGUARDING GLOBAL NUCLEAR SECURITY

As the international security situation is undergoing profound evolution with frequent global terrorist incidents, the maintenance of global nuclear security and prevention of nuclear terrorism is becoming increasingly prominent to the world, Wang said.

Xi's attendance at the fourth Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington shows that China attaches great importance to nuclear security, reflecting China's willingness to promote global security governance, said the Chinese diplomat.

At the third NSS in The Hague, Xi first proposed "a rational, coordinated and balanced" nuclear security concept and advocated the building of a global nuclear security system featuring fairness and win-win cooperation, Wang said.

During this summit, Xi expounded on how to strengthen the international nuclear security system, including the strengthening of political commitment, national responsibility, international cooperation and nuclear security culture.

Xi put forward a five-point proposal to promote international cooperation in nuclear security -- building of a network for capacity building on nuclear security, supporting all countries in minimizing the use of the highly enriched uranium according to their needs, promoting its national security monitoring system for nuclear power and helping others enhance their capacity in security monitoring and contribute its share to enhancing nuclear power safety and security worldwide.

The proposal, which would benefit the world by providing public goods, are generally welcomed by the participating countries, Wang said.

At the plenary session, Xi briefed the participating dignitaries on the progress China has made since the 2014 NSS with a comprehensive introduction of China's new initiatives and achievements made in the field of nuclear security, such as the strengthening of the mechanisms and capacity building at the national level, ratifying all the international legal instruments in the field of nuclear security ,and vigorously promoting international exchanges and cooperation.

Wang said that China submitted "the National Progress Report on Nuclear Security" to the summit and demonstrated China's nuclear security achievements.

He said that China's achievements on nuclear security are "visible and tangible," which can stand the test of time and history and present an open, confident and responsible image of China to the rest of the world

Wang said the concept of China's nuclear security proposed by Xi has won support from the participating countries in the summit and was adopted into the joint communique issued at the end of the summit.

As the world's two nuclear powers, China and the United States on Thursday issued a joint statement on nuclear security cooperation, which has become a bright spot of the summit.

The two countries jointly built the Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security in Beijing, the largest of its kind in the Asia Pacific region.

Wang said that all the achievements indicated the fruitful cooperation between China and the United States on nuclear security and other global governance issues.

During the summit, Xi attended a meeting participated by leaders of six countries which helped broker the Iranian nuclear deal, an event on the sidelines of the fourth NSS.

Xi expounded China's principals on the Iranian nuclear-related issues, providing political guidance to the full implementation of the follow-up agreement.

During the summit, Xi also met with U.S. President Barack Obama. The two leaders exchanged views on a wide range of issues of common concern and reached important consensus, Wang said.

Speaking highly of the bilateral cooperation in the fields of nuclear security and climate change, Xi and Obama agreed to deepen practical cooperation in various fields, constructively manage their differences, and constantly advance bilateral relations.

Wang said the tone of the meeting is positive and constructive, laying a good foundation for the sound and stable development of future Sino-U.S. relations.

EXPOUNDING CHINA'S POLICIES

Xi's visit, which came soon after the release of China's 13th Five-Year Plan for Social and Economic Development, has been seen by the world as a chance to address international concerns about China's economic development, said the foreign minister.

During his tour, the Chinese president has taken various opportunities during bilateral talks, multilateral meetings and informal discussion, to expound on China's development strategies and philosophy to extend confidence on China's economic outlook.

The Chinese economy will maintain a good momentum of growth in the long term and will continue to make great contribution to the world economy through its consistent economic restructuring and build-up of new driving force of growth, Xi has said.

Xi's confident assertion about China's economic outlook has raised the positive anticipation for the Chinese economy by the outside world, said the foreign minister.

About the recently released 13th Five-Year Plan, Xi said that China will initiate a shift in its growth model led by its new development philosophy in an effort to adapt to the state of new normal.

The 13th Five-Year Plan will create more favorable conditions and more diverse opportunities for those countries participating in China's economic and social construction, Xi said.

The president's elaboration on China's policies has allowed the world to better recognize China's growth course and shore up its anticipation on China's economic outlook, Wang said.