China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) Chief Executive Chui Sai On (L) meets with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa during his visit in Lisbon, Portugal, Sept. 12, 2016. (Xinhua/Zhang Liyun)
LISBON, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chief Executive of Macao Special Administrative Region Chui Sai On has said Macao is keen to strengthen cooperation on economy and language education with Portugal.
During his meeting with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Monday evening, Chui briefed the president on the fourth Macao-Portugal joint committee meeting, which was held earlier in the day.
Chui said Macao would actively promote adequate economic diversification and regional cooperation while further strengthening cooperation on economy and Portuguese language education with Portugal.
Meanwhile, the Portuguese president said both sides had been enjoying good cooperative relations in finance, economy, culture, and language and the Portuguese language was a key element for establishing good relationships.
He cited the forum for economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries as an example of the Portuguese language's function in promoting friendly relationships between the two sides.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa said when meeting with Chui that Macao, an important bridge for maintaining a good relationship between China and Portugal, was actively promoting adequate economic diversification, which opened the door for cooperation for Portugal, and also helped to promote cooperation and development in economy and innovation in science and technology.
Chui, who co-chaired the fourth Macao-Portugal joint committee meeting on Monday with Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva, told a press conference that through the efforts of both parties, Macao and Portugal had signed cooperation agreements on more than 120 projects, covering 33 fields.
He said he was satisfied with the fruitful results, and hoped to make further enhancements in bilateral cooperation.
For his part, Santos Silva said Macao was an important exchange platform for enterprises between China and Portugal and also a bridge for Portuguese language education and mutual exchange.
He said the Portuguese government was duty-bound to offer appropriate support for training for Portuguese-speaking professionals and hoped that both sides would further enhance the cooperation in the high-tech domain.
