Ismail Tiliwaldi, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, Tuesday wrapped up a four-day goodwill visit to Yemen.

During his stay in the country, Ismail Tiliwaldi met Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Prime Minister Ali Muhammad al-Mujawar, Parliament Speaker Yahia al-Ra'i and other senior officials.

He told the Yemeni leaders that China and Yemen have enjoyed a long-standing friendship and China is willing to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields and enhance parliamentary exchanges with Yemen.

In recent years, the two countries have witnessed frequent high-level visits, ever-deepening economic and trade cooperation, and close coordination on international and regional affairs, said the legislator, who was visiting Yemen at the invitation of the country's parliament.

China attaches importance to the development of traditional friendship with Yemen and is willing to deepen bilateral mutually beneficial cooperation in such fields as economy and trade, investment, culture, science and technology, and the health sector, the legislator said.

He also called on the two countries to further parliamentary exchanges in a bid to promote the all-round development of friendly relations between the two countries.

President Saleh and other top Yemen officials spoke highly of the achievements China has made in past years and congratulated the country on its successful hosting of the Beijing Olympic Games.

They also expressed gratitude for China's sincere support and disinterested assistance for Yemen's development and vowed to expand the scope of bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

The parliament of Yemen has also pledged to deepen exchanges and cooperation with its Chinese counterpart.

Yemen is the second leg of Ismail Tiliwaldi's three-country tour that began in Tunisia and will end in Egypt.

(Xinhua News Agency November 18, 2008)