In the morning of May 6 local time, Premier Li Keqiang met with President Mulatu Teshome of Ethiopia at the National Palace in Addis Ababa.

Li Keqiang conveyed warm greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping to President Mulatu Teshome. Li Keqiang said, Mr. President used to study and then work in China, and China highly appreciates the long-standing and important contributions made by Mr. President to boosting China-Ethiopia relations and China-Africa relations. The China-Ethiopia relationship has now got into an all-dimensional and multi-tiered new pattern of cooperation with inter-governmental, inter-party and non-governmental exchanges functioning as pillars and political, economic, trade, people-to-people and cultural cooperation serving as the main line. It can be regarded as a model for the cooperation between China and African countries as well as South-South cooperation.

Li Keqiang said, in the past two days, I had fruitful talks with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and reached important consensus on the development of China-Ethiopia relations and cooperation in the new era. I also had extensive contacts with people from all walks of life in Ethiopia, and personally experienced the profound affections and friendship the Ethiopian people hold towards the Chinese people. The development of infrastructure and promotion of opening-up serve as the two "wheels" that drive the developing countries to realize economic takeoff. China stands ready to work with the Ethiopian side to consolidate traditional friendship, to comprehensively expand and deepen cooperation in infrastructure construction such as railways and highways and in manufacturing industry, and to strengthen cooperation in finance and industrial parks, elevating the bilateral friendly cooperative relations to a new high.

Mulatu Teshome asked Li Keqiang to convey his best wishes to President Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders. He said that 50 years ago, the then Premier Zhou Enlai chose Ethiopia as one of his destinations for his first visit to Africa, and Premier Li Keqiang made it the first stop of his visit to Africa this time. It demonstrates the great importance that China attaches to its relations with Ethiopia and that the Ethiopia-China relations, which are based on mutual respect, mutual benefit, win-win results, sincerity and friendship, are very close and robust. The Ethiopian side is deeply grateful for China's valuable support and selfless assistance and the active participation of Chinese enterprises, which have strongly boosted the economic and social development of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian side admires China's development achievements and is willing to take China as an example and to learn from its development experience, to expand cooperation in infrastructure construction such as railways, highways and others. More Chinese enterprises are welcomed to invest and establish business in Ethiopia, so as to promote the growth and transformation of Ethiopia economy and to achieve common development.

Premier Li Keqiang's wife Mme. Cheng Hong and President Mulatu Teshome's wife Meaza were present at the meeting.