Ukraine's Parliament speaker Oleksander Moroz hopes that the his upcoming visit to China will boost inter-parliamentary exchanges and enhance cooperation between the two countries.

Moroz made the remarks in an interview with Chinese reporters prior to his four-day visit to China beginning on March 28.

Being one of Ukraine's senior-most political activists, Moroz was elected chairman of the Ukrainian Supreme Council for the second time in July 2006.

"I have not been to China, but I have read a lot about the country, which makes me believe a comprehensive cooperation with China is of strategic importance to Ukraine," said Moroz.

Moroz noted that China and Ukraine have already established a strategic partnership with no real sticking issues, and the two countries are actively engaged in high-level political dialogues.

He hailed the top Chinese political adviser Jia Qingling's visit to Ukraine last November as "productive" in promoting bilateral ties, and said that the two countries share similar views on many international issues.

He said that mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity has laid the solid foundation for the development of good Sino-Ukrainian relations, adding that Ukraine adheres to the "one-China" policy and recognizes Taiwan as an inseparable part of China.

Moroz also expressed hope that negotiations between the two countries to improve bilateral ties and enhance cooperation can be accelerated.

He said that the two nations have a lot of cooperative potential in various fields, which should be exploited, and hoped the legislative bodies of the two countries help in providing the necessary legal guarantees to promote further exchange.

He stressed that enhancing economic relations should be set as a high priority in broadening bilateral cooperation. Ukraine hoped to attract investment from and enhance cooperation with China in the realization of the diversification of energy resources, in the construction of road-transport related infrastructure as well as in the fields of aviation, nuclear energy, information and communication technology, agriculture and the coal industry.

In addition, the Ukrainian side also suggested that establishing a Ukrainian technology park in China and the creation of an energy transportation corridor would be significant contributions toward the development of Ukraine-China cooperation.

He added that cooperation in education and sports needed further attention.

Citing the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, he said that important sports events like this will provide opportunities for the two nations to promote exchanges in the field of sports.

Moroz voiced satisfaction over the exchanges between the two countries' legislatures. He said that relations between the two legislatures have witnessed some energetic developments in recent years, with regular exchanges between various parliamentary commissions and an inter-parliamentary friendship council.

The Ukrainian legislature has drawn a wide range of experiences from the Sino-Ukrainian Friendship Council, which was set up in 1994 and now has over 100 members, he said.

Moroz also said that the process of constitutional reform in Ukraine, began in early 2006, and that politically speaking the country is still in a transitional phase.

He added that the reforms have not yet seen remarkable progress, but the process has generally been in the right direction.

He said, "China's experience concerning the issue has seen great success. For instance, under the overall command of the Chinese Communist Party (CPC), at various levels of the government, other parties can freely express their opinions."

During his forthcoming visit to China, Moroz hopes to have a better understanding of the role of local authorities and their relationship with the central government.

Source: Xinhua