President James Michel met with the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, Mr. Xie Hangsheng, at State House this morning, following the signing of a mutual visa waiver agreement between Seychelles and China at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Seychelles is the second country in the world and the first in Africa to have signed such an agreement with the People's Republic of China, which allows for visa exemptions for all kinds of passports.

President Michel expressed his gratitude to the People's Republic of China for the signature of this agreement which he said was a 'milestone in relations between Seychelles and China' and would develop their people-to-people relations.

" We value the special relationship that exists between China and Seychelles...China has helped us immensely in our development and is continuing to support us in various fields.... We both believe in peace and in fairness and we support each other's development... The mutual visa waiver agreement will further develop our relations and will become a showcase to the world, of how two countries with a common vision can achieve greater levels of confidence and cooperation," said President Michel.

Vice Minister Xie Hangsheng said that he was deeply impressed by the strategic vision of Seychelles as well as its natural beauty, and that the new agreement would facilitate further development of economic, cultural, and educational ties between to the two countries.

“China and Seychelles relationship has now entered into a new stage... Chinese tourists will continue coming to Seychelles and more Seychellois will now be going to China. You can realize the huge effect that this agreement will have, especially for our bilateral cooperation by adding further momentum to people-to-people exchange, more investment and cultural exchanges,” said Vice Minister Hangsheng.

He said that his official visit to Seychelles has confirmed the excellent relations that exist between the two countries, relations that he hopes will further develop base on sincerity and friendship that already exist.

The Visa waiver agreement will now be processed through several stages of legal procedure before becoming formalized for the benefit of Seychellois and Chinese travellers.

Editor's note

Also present at the meeting were;

1. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jean-Paul Adam

2. The Secretary General of the Executive Office of the President, Mrs. Lise Bastienne.

2. The Chinese Ambassador to Seychelles, Mr. Shi Zhonjun