Chinese Premier visits Hungary

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao arrived in Hungary on Friday for a two-day official visit, the first to Hungary by a Chinese premier in 24 years. It is the first leg of Wen's three-nation Europe tour that also includes Britain and Germany.

At Budapest's international airport, Wen pointed out Hungary was one of the first countries to forge diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. He added that Hungary, currently holding the rotating European Union (EU) presidency, had worked strenuously to help develop China-EU ties.

He expressed his view that this visit will boost mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples, deepen bilateral exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation, as well as push for further development of the friendly and cooperative partnership between China and Hungary.

Speaking before students at Budapest's ELTE University that has the country's only Chinese department, the Prime Minister said he was hopeful that China and Hungary would not only deepen economic and trade relations but would also increase cooperation in the scientific and educational sphere.

Wen will hold talks with Hungarian leaders on Saturday. He is also expected to attend the signing ceremony of a series of agreements, an indication of closer political and economic ties between the two states.

Hungary is one of China's most important trading partners in Central and Eastern Europe. The volume of bilateral trade reached a record high of USD 8.72 billion last year, up 28.1 percent on 2009.