On the afternoon of October 26, 2007, Chinese President Hu Jintao, who is also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met at the Great Hall of the People with Indian National Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi, also leader of the Indian United Progressive Alliance.

At the meeting, Hu made positive comments on the contributions made by Indian National Congress Party and its president Sonia Gandhi to the development of relations between the two parties and two countries. On behalf of the CPC, Hu thanked for Sonia Gandhi's congratulatory message for the 17th CPC National Congress.

The Chinese President said that China-India relations have developed in depth and enjoyed good momentum in recent years. Both countries are important neighbors to each other, as well as large developing nations, he said, noting that long-term friendship, cooperation with mutual benefits and common development between the two nations will change Asia and the world "in a profound way". Hu said that the CPC and Chinese government always handle the bilateral relations at a strategic level and in a global perspective and would like to join hands with the Indian side to push for the "ten strategies" and step up the strategic partnership to a new level.

Hu said the CPC adheres to four principles in developing ties with other political parties, namely independence, complete equality, mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs. "We will continue to boost exchanges and cooperation with various Indian political parties including the National Congress Party," Hu told Sonia Gandhi. He also called for strengthening friendly exchanges between politicians of the two parties and two countries, especially young politicians, to contribute to all-round development of the China-India strategic partnership.

Sonia Gandhi congratulated Hu on his reelection as CPC party chief, saying that she felt delighted to be the first foreign party leader to visit China since the successful convening of the 17th CPC National Congress. She said that she is very impressed by the remarkable achievements China has made in various sectors, adding that these achievements result from hard work of the Chinese people and also reflect farsightedness of Chinese leadership. She expressed her satisfaction with the smooth development of bilateral relations and expansion of the two-way cooperation in various fields such as in trade. The Indian National Congress Party highly values its ties with the CPC and hopes to work with the CPC to boost exchanges and cooperation between the two parties, especially among young politicians, Sonia Gandhi added.

Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee Wang Jiarui and other officials attended the meeting.