China and Chile agreed on Tuesday to lift bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership. [Special coverage]
The decision was announced during Chinese President Xi Jinping's first state visit to Chile since taking office in 2013.
Chinese president arrives in Chile for state visit
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in the Chilean capital of Santiago Tuesday afternoon for a state visit to the Latin American country.
Chile is the third leg of Xi's three-nation Latin America tour, which has already taken him to Ecuador and Peru. In Peru, Xi also attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting. >>>
China, Chile agree to initiate talks on FTA upgrade
China and Chile agreed Tuesday to start negotiation on upgrading their Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
The announcement was declared during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the South American nation.
The two countries signed their FTA in 2005, which helped boost bilateral trade volume to nearly 32 billion U.S. dollars last year. >>>
Chile wants to join AIIB as soon as possible: president
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on Tuesday said her country wants to join the China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) at the earliest date possible.
Bachelet made the remarks when meeting with visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping who arrived in Santiago on Tuesday afternoon for a state visit.
In a joint statement issued after the meeting, the two countries agreed to lift bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership and to start talks on an upgrade of their free trade agreement (FTA) as soon as possible. >>>
