Ｌｏｎｇ Ｌｉｖｅ Ｓｉｎｏ－Ｃａｐｅｖｅｒｄｅａｎ Ｆｒｉｅｎｄｓｈｉｐ Ａｎｄ Ｃｏｏｐｅｒａｔｉｏｎ

Editor’s note:

The 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Cape Verde falls on April 25， 2006. Ambassador Julio Cesar Freire de Morais wrote the following article for Voice of Friendship to mark the occasion.

April 25， 1976 represents a benchmark on the history of the relations between the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of Cape Verde， namely the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two states， culminating a process during which the Chinese people signified its inexorable solidarity by supporting morally and materially the liberation struggle of the people of Cape Verde (and Guiné-Bissau)， which was completed on the 5th of July 1975 with the event of national independence.

Since then， bilateral links have strengthened and diversified in all domains and areas of political， economic， cultural and scientific lives， in the global frame of Sino-African civilization dialogue.

Cape Verde fully adheres to the one-China principle and both sides strictly uphold the five principles of Peaceful Coexistence， as well asmutual benefit， respect of choice of the model of development and mutual support and close coordination in the international arena.

Delegations have multiplied at all political levels， including high-level visits， exchanges between legislative bodies and political parties， and regular cooperation dialogue in international affairs.

Turning point moments were established with the inauguration of the Embassy of Cape Verde in Beijing in July 2001， reinforced by the visit of Capeverdean Prime Minister José Maria Neves in August 2004， and confirmed by the appointment of the first Capeverdean ambassador to the People’s Republic of China in August 2005 and the official visit to Praia of the Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing in January 2006.

Bilateral partnership phenomenon nowadays represents a diverse spectrum of relations in the economic field---trade， investment， agricultural cooperation， infrastructure building， debt reduction and relief and economic assistance---and social sectors， with focus on education and public administration， human resources training， health， media， environment and people-to-people and cultural exchanges---special mention deserve to be made of the excellent team of Chinese doctors and the construction of the first dam built in Santiago， the biggest island of the country.

Furthermore， good perspectives of cooperation opened recently in the field of tourism， fisheries， sister cooperation between local governments and investment in the economic area， cemented by the increasing installation of some Chinese enterprises in the islands.

These common achievements fit adequately with the development strategy of the Capeverdean government to transform the country into a regional hub in West Africa， optimizing the geographic location of the Islands at the middle of the Atlantic Ocean on the crossroads of Africa， America and Europe， near to the biggest markets and the sources of strategic raw material.

The strengthening of the all-round relations with China will certainly help Cape Verde lay the foundation for economic takeoff and sustained growth， providing the cushion that it needs as it is at the edge of graduating from the Least Developed Countries (LDC) group. The success of a smooth transition period of this complex graduation process will be a role model for the development of the African continent， as well as for the small island developing states (SIDS) in the world.

The actual tendencies in Sino-Capeverdean cooperation show that it is in a good path. The 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations is a sovereign occasion to deepen and raise dialogue to higher levels of mutual understanding and partnership.

Long live Sino-Capeverdean friendship and cooperation!

Beijing， February 16， 2006