Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo met in Lima yesterday with Chinese Culture Minister Sun Jiazheng, who is here as a special envoy of the Chinese government to attend Peru's president inauguration ceremony set for Friday.

 

Toledo expressed his gratitude to China for sending an envoy to the ceremony and asked Sun to convey his greetings and thanks to President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao.

 

He said Peru attached great importance to the development of relations between Peru and China. Toledo said he would continue to promote the friendship between the two countries after leaving his post.

 

The newly appointed foreign minister, Jose Garcia Belaunde, also held a meeting with Sun, in which they exchanged views on further development of bilateral relations.

 

Peru's president-elect, Alan Garcia, a social democrat from the Peruvian Aprista Party, will be formally sworn in today.

 

(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2006)