Li Changchun, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), started his good-will visit to Norway on Thursday after concluding a visit to Switzerland.

In a written statement released on his arrival at the international airport in Oslo, Li said the peoples of both China and Norway enjoy traditional friendship.

China and Norway have conducted effective cooperation in various fields and there are great potential and good prospects for such cooperation, said Li, one of the nine members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC's Central Committee.

Li said China attaches great importance to relations with Norway. "I hope that through talks and meetings with leaders of Norway, we can frankly exchange our views about major international issues of common concern," he said in the statement.

China and Norway established diplomatic relations on Oct. 5, 1954. Since then, the two countries have developed their ties smoothly.

Norway is the last leg of Li's four-nation trip which has also taken him to Uzbekistan, Bulgaria and Switzerland.

Source: Xinhua