China-Bahamas bonds continue to strengthen

Vast oceans spanned by nations' ever-growing friendship

Even mountains and seas cannot separate people with common aspirations - such is the portrait of the bilateral relations between China and the Bahamas.

Although vast oceans are between the two countries, their peoples have a natural sense of intimacy in their friendship.

Since 1997 when the two countries established formal diplomatic relations, China and the Bahamas have transcended differences in ideology and social systems, made progress together and achieved steady development in bilateral relations.

Last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed to build a community of shared destinies between China and Latin American and Caribbean nations, which also helped realize thriving, pragmatic cooperation between China and the Bahamas.

President Xi's historic visits to Latin America in 2013 and 2014 injected new vitality into China-Bahamas relations, resulting in enhanced mutual political trust and frequent exchanges at all levels.

The mutual visa-exemption agreement signed by China and the Bahamas took effect on Feb 12, 2014, which also greatly facilitates exchanges between the two countries.

The Bahamian government attaches growing importance to the relationship with China.

The attendance of a high-level the Bahamas delegation led by Prime Minister Perry Christie at this year's ministerial meeting of the China-CELAC Forum - a forum between China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States - reinforced the high value that the country places on ties with China.

China-Bahamas trade and economic cooperation continues to deepen with the help of the driving forces of business cooperation and foreign aid, and social and economic benefits continue to appear.

In October 2014, the purchase of Bahamas Hilton Hotel by China Construction America (CCA) pushed forward bilateral economic cooperation into a new stage. In March this year, CCA will complete construction on BahaMar Resort - the world's largest tourist resort at a total investment of $3.5 billion, which will greatly boost the Bahamas economy and offer new job opportunities.

China and the Bahamas also have exchanges in the fields of science, technology, education, culture and health, which became more frequent last year.

The Chinese government continues to provide government-funded and special scholarships to Bahamian students and also organized short-term training for 50 government officials and technicians in 2014.

Opera performers from Zhejiang province fascinated Bahamas audiences with their melodious arias and strong local flavor.

In return, education and artistic delegations from the Bahamas also visited China.

Looking to the future of China-Bahamas relations, more efforts should be made to further the comprehensive partnership under the new circumstances.

The two countries are both now in important stages of economic and social development with broad common interests and bright prospects in bilateral relations.

China is a large and responsible developing country, dedicated to the improvement of people's well-being and advocating win-win cooperation in the international arena, while the Bahamas is an important economy in the Caribbean region and has exerted extensive influence on regional political and economic affairs.

We believe this year's China-CELAC forum would promote a comprehensive cooperative partnership between China and Latin America and Caribbean states based on equality, mutual benefits and common development.

The author is the Chinese ambassador to the Bahamas.