Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu in the port city of Tianjin on Sunday.
Muizzu arrived in Beijing on Saturday afternoon to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit 2025 which is held on Sunday and Monday in Tianjin, as well as the commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War on Sept 3 in Beijing.
During the meeting, Xi pointed out that China and the Maldives pursue common goals together and share weal and woe.
Noting that the two sides agreed to elevate the bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and build a China-Maldives community with a shared future last year, Xi said China and the Maldives have made positive progress in Belt and Road cooperation since then, and the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries has been deepened, bringing benefits to the people of both countries.
Xi said China will continue to support the Maldives in safeguarding its national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, and exploring a development path that suits its own national conditions.
China is ready to enhance exchanges with the Maldives in various aspects including political parties, legislative bodies and governments, boost mutual understanding and trust, and promote mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples, he said.
Xi said the two countries should continue to deepen practical cooperation, honestly implement the China-Maldives Free Trade Agreement, and carry out cooperation in fishery, marine scientific research, environmental protection, disaster prevention and mitigation.
He also called on the two sides to strengthen communication and collaboration, work together to safeguard common strategic interests and international fairness and justice, and join hands to build a community with a shared future for humanity.
For his part, Muizzu congratulated China on its imminent successful completion of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) and its remarkable development achievements.
China has a profound cultural heritage and advocates building a community with a shared future for humanity, bringing stability to the world amid the current volatile international situation, said the Maldivian president.
The close relationship between the Maldives and China has set a model of equal-footed cooperation between countries of different sizes, said Muizzu, expressing his appreciation to China for its long-standing assistance to the Maldives' economic development and people's livelihood.
Muizzu said the Maldivian side firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is ready to expand cooperation with China in such fields as trade, investment, housing and urban-rural development, and tourism, as well as strengthen coordination and cooperation with China within multilateral mechanisms including the SCO, so as to jointly build a Maldives-China community with a shared future.
Xi meets Maldivian president in Tianjin
The three astronauts of China's recently-returned Shenzhou-20 mission on Friday shared the experiences of their dramatic 204-day space mission, including detailing the emergency procedures which were implemented to bring them safely home after their return capsule was struck by space debris.
The trio -- Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui, and Wang Jie -- met with the press in Beijing on Friday afternoon, marking their first public appearance since returning to Earth in November.
When detailing the emergency response mechanisms which were enacted prior to their scheduled return, the astronauts explained that upon discovering a triangular crack on the spacecraft's viewport window, they immediately took photos for documentation and transmitted them to the ground team, who swiftly activated an emergency plan to get the trio home safely.
Experienced mission commander Chen Dong explained how the crew had complete faith in their colleagues on the ground to find a solution to these unforeseen circumstances which led to their return being delayed.
"First, we must trust the ground team, who would anticipate everything and develop the safest return plan for us. Second, we must believe in ourselves; as well-trained astronauts, we have the ability to manage various unexpected failures. I believe that with the collaboration of astronauts and researchers on the ground, our space home will surely go farther, more steadily, and for a longer time," he said.
Following their extended stay in space as a result of the debris incident, the Shenzhou-20 crew spent a total 204 days in orbit, setting a new record for the longest duration by a single group of Chinese astronauts.
During their mission, they completed multiple payload operations, conducted extensive scientific experiments, and carried out four extravehicular activities.
"Our crew worked together with the ground team in unity and coordination, completing four extravehicular activities, several payload entry and exit tasks, and a large number of scientific experiments. It was a fulfilling yet challenging mission. The path to exploring the heavens is long and arduous, but I firmly believe that China's space missions will succeed," said Chen Zhongrui, a former air force pilot who was making his first spaceflight during the mission.
"From the ground to space, from learning to application, I have deeply felt the solid progress of Chinese space endeavors and the quiet dedication of countless personnel behind the scenes. In the future, I will accomplish each mission with full commitment, living up to the trust of the motherland and the people," said fellow astronaut Wang Jie, who was also making his debut spaceflight.
After returning to Earth on Nov 14, the trio successfully completed their isolation recovery and rehabilitation and will now resume normal training following health assessments.
The crew's return, originally scheduled for Nov 5, was postponed due to safety concerns, with the astronauts later using the return capsule belonging to their successor crew of the Shenzhou-21 mission to get back to Earth. China later launched the unmanned Shenzhou-22 spacecraft which will serve the future return of the crew now aboard the Tiangong Space Station.
Shenzhou-20 astronauts share experiences after safely returning from debris incident
