On 11 April, Vice-Premier Li Lanqing of the Chinese State Council met with President Ratsirak of Madagascar on the sidelines of the South Summit in Havana.

Vice-Premier Li first conveyed the cordial greetings from President Jiang Zemin to President Ratsirak and expressed appreciation over his contributions to developing China-Madagascar relations in the years past. He expressed that the Chinese government attaches great importance to developing the friendly relations and cooperation with Madagascar and stands ready to actively explore new ways and channels for bilateral cooperation.

President Ratsirak thanked the Chinese government for its assistance during the time of the natural disaster in Madagascar. He said Madagascar and China have long-term friendly relations and cooperation, which serve as a good example in South-South cooperation. The government of Madagascar attaches great importance to the South Summit held in Cuba and hopes it will achieve substantial results in terms of South-South cooperation.