Li says all countries must help safeguard free trade

Premier Li Keqiang called on all countries to safeguard free trade by boosting trade liberalization and facilitating investment, in efforts to fight rising protectionism, when he met with visiting Cameroonian President Paul Biya on Friday.

Li said he highly appreciated the development of bilateral relations with Cameroon. The premier said President Xi Jinping held productive talks with Biya, which has set new directions for the two countries' ties.

Li said China and African nations including Cameroon, as developing countries, maintain shared interests in their development. China imposes no political conditions when providing aid to Cameroon, he said.

The premier said China would like to strengthen political trust and win-win cooperation with the African country, taking the bilateral ties to a new stage.

Biya congratulated Li on his second term as premier. After expressing his gratitude to China for its support to Cameroon's social and economic development, he said his country will continue to be committed to deepening friendship and pragmatic cooperation with the world's second-largest economy.

Li Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, also met with Biya on Friday in Beijing. Biya congratulated him on his new post.

In recent years, both countries have maintained healthy and stable ties to build a stronger friendship, the chairman said.

The foremost task now is to carry out the consensuses reached by Xi and Biya, he said. The National People's Congress is ready to further promote exchanges with Cameroon's legislators, and legislatures from both countries should offer stronger political support to each other with a well-built foundation for public opinion, he said.

Biya began his state visit to China on Thursday. He also visited the headquarters of the International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation in Beijing on Friday. The Cameroonian president was to return home on Saturday.