Xi tells Gates China 'always placed our hopes' in the American people: state media

BEIJING, China - Chinese leader Xi Jinping told his "American friend" Bill Gates on Friday that China has "always placed our hopes" in the American people, state media reported.

"You are the first American friend I have met in Beijing this year," Xi told Gates in Beijing, according to the state-run People's Daily.

"We have always placed our hopes on the American people, and hoped for continued friendship between the peoples of the two countries," Xi added.

"I am very happy to see you. We have not met in more than three years," he reportedly told Gates.

"You are someone who has done a lot of good things in your participation in China's development work, and you are our old friend." Gates - one of the world's richest men - is among a number of Western business leaders to visit China since the country ended strict Covid controls that largely closed it off from the world for almost three years.

The visit is Gates' first to China in four years.

In his meeting with Xi, Gates "introduced his thoughts on the current situation and future of cooperation with China", state media reported.

"China has made huge achievements attracting worldwide attention in poverty alleviation and in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, setting a good example for the world," he said, according to the report. - AFP)