Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), made the remarks while meeting with Anna Elisabeth Haselbach, vice-president of the Austrian Federal Council.

Wu said Sino-Austrian ties have developed smoothly in the past 32 years since the establishment of the diplomatic ties.

China always attaches importance to its relations with Austria and other European Union member countries on the basis of equality, reciprocity, and mutual respect, Wu said.

In recent years, Wu said, the NPC and the Austrian Federal Council have developed close cooperation. He expressed the hope that the two sides would strengthen exchanges and communication to promote Sino-Austrian friendly ties.

Wu appreciated Haselbach's attendance at the Rosenfeld Exhibition in China at the invitation of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), saying that Chinese people will never forget the precious contributions Dr. Rosenfeld had made to China's liberation.

Jakob Rosenfeld, Austrian doctor, came to china in 1939 and, two years later, joined the New Fourth Army led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) against Japanese aggression. For eight years he treated thousands of wounded soldiers of the armed forces led by the CPC. He returned home shortly after the liberation of China and died of a heart attack in 1952 at the age of 49.

Haselbach said this year is 100th anniversary of Rosenfeld's birthday and the bilateral commitment made to further Sino-Austrian friendly ties is the fulfillment of the doctor's last will.

Haselbach said her first China visit coincided with the outbreak of the Gulf War in 1991 and when she came to China again, the present Iraq War was going on, stressing that the coincidence demonstrated the preciousness of peace.

Agreeing with Wu's views, Haselbach pledged that the Austrian Federal Council will offer concrete cooperation with the NPC in various fields.

(Xinhua News Agency April 12, 2003)