On September 14, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of congratulation to Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam on occasion of his assumption of office as President of the Republic of Singapore.

President Xi points out that China and Singapore are close neighbors and important cooperative partners. With the joint efforts of both sides, China and Singapore have embarked on a successful path of mutual learning and win-win cooperation, which has not only promoted our respective development and revitalization, but also set a fine example for cooperation among countries in the region. This year, our bilateral relationship was upgraded to an All-Round High-Quality Future-Oriented Partnership, charting the course for the high-level development of bilateral relations in the new era. I attach great importance to the development of China-Singapore relationship. I am ready to establish a good working relationship with President  Tharman Shanmugaratnam to take our bilateral ties to greater heights and seek more complementarity in each other’s modernization process so that we can bring more benefits to the two peoples and make greater contributions to regional peace, prosperity and stability.