LUSAKA, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Zambia's founding president Kenneth Kaunda has hailed the relationship with China over the years and prayed for continued growth of the relationship.
Kaunda, who developed diplomatic ties with Chairman Mao Zedong, said the development of the relationship between the two countries was extremely important because it has been the basis on how the two countries have been working together.
Kaunda made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua on the 55 years since the development of diplomatic ties between the two countries and on the occasion of the 70 years founding anniversary of China. He said that it was gratifying to see so much work being done by Chinese in Zambia in various sectors and hoped this may continue.
Kaunda, 95, further congratulated China over 70 years of its founding anniversary and hoped that the two countries will continue working together.
"It is important that we work together as co-human beings and we therefore wants to see this friendship continue to grow all the time. So please let us continue to remember that friendship is something we must continue to build on all the time," he said.
He reiterated that China has always been friendly to Zambia as evidenced when the Asian nation helped construct the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority at a time when the southern African nation had its important trade routes closed.
Zambia, he said, has a lot to learn from China that has recorded tremendous development over the years and managed to lift the majority of its population out of poverty.
