China and Uzbekistan reaffirmed Wednesday they would further advance and expand their cooperation.

China-Uzbekistan relations had entered a brand-new phase since the two countries established diplomatic ties 20 years ago, said visiting Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu when he met Uzbek Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyaev here.

The China-Uzbekistan strategic partnership, forged in June during a visit by Uzbek President Islam Karimov to China, further boosted the China-Uzbekistan relations to a new development era, Hui said.

He said his current visit to Uzbekistan was aimed at further advancing bilateral cooperation and implementing the important consensus reached between the heads of state of the two countries.

In recent years, Hui said, both countries had enjoyed increasingly strengthened mutual political trust, seen mutual understanding and support on those major issues concerning their core interests, worked together to carry out various large projects in the fields of economy and trade, energy, and infrastructure, and cooperated well on regional and international issues.

Both countries valued their relationship and regarded each other as good partners and sincere brothers, Hui said, noting the establishment of a bilateral strategic parntership met the interests of the peoples of both countries.

Appreciating Uzbekistan's friendly policies towards China, Hui said China was willing to work with Uzbekistan to expand bilateral pragmatic cooperation and push ahead the bilateral strategic partnership.

To that end, Hui suggested the two countries, first of all, should implement various consensuses and agreements reached between the leaders of the two countries and then make full play of the inter-governmental cooperation committee between the two countries.

Meanwhile, the two countires should innovate their cooperation patterns to expand the cooperation realm and achieve a win-win and sustainable cooperation, Hui said.

Mirziyaev said China was a friend that Uzbekistan could trust, and the same applied in reverse.

Uzbekstan upheld peace-oriented external policies, stuck to the one-China policy, and supported China's pursuit of a good neighborhood and friendship with its neighboring countries as well as its efforts to fight the three evil forces of extremism, terrorism and separatism, Mirziyaev said.

Appreciating China's vigorous economic and political support to Uzbekistan, Mirziyaev hoped to deepen cooperation with China in various fields, including political affairs, security, trade, investment, transportation and agriculture.

Uzbekistan is the last leg of Hui's multi-nation trip, which has also taken him to Ethiopia, the Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Kyrgyzstan.