LUSAKA, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Tuesday pledged commitment to continue promoting bilateral ties which have existed over the years.
Zambia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Harry Kalaba, in remarks delivered after he held private talks with visiting DRC Minister of foreign affairs and regional integration in charge of Congolese from abroad Emmanuel Ilunga Ngoie Kasongo, said the two countries have enjoyed brotherly relationship over the years as they shared the longest border between them.
He said the ties between the two countries were so tight that anything that affects either of the two countries affects the other as well.
According to the Zambian minister, the two ministers discussed, among other things the need to waive visa requirements in order to ease the movement of people and goods.
He further said the two countries discussed the influx of DRC asylum seekers who were being kept at Kenani Transit Center in Nchelenge district in Luapula province, with the Zambian minister saying the government was concerned with the political instability in the DRC.
DRC, he said, was Zambia's biggest trading partner in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and that any instability in that country affects trade between the two countries.
For his part, the DRC minister thanked Zambia for being an all-weather partner and pledged his government's commitment to ensure that the cooperation was enhanced.
