On April 18, 2017, Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Beijing with Minister of Foreign Affairs Osman Saleh of Eritrea, who was on an official visit to China.

Wang Yi said that China-Eritrea relations maintain a sustained and healthy development with mutual understanding and support on issues concerning respective core interests and major concerns. Both countries have forged a profound friendship. China is willing to, together with Eritrea, take the implementation of outcomes of the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) as an opportunity to intensify political exchanges, strengthen cooperation and planning, give priority to mutually beneficial cooperation in such fields as mining, agriculture, fishery, tourism, poverty reduction, infrastructure construction and human resource development, expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and intensify coordination in international and regional affairs, so as to elevate China-Eritrea relations to new highs.

Osman Saleh said that Eritrea thanked China for its long-term support and assistance. Both countries share high-level political mutual trust and huge potential in mutually beneficial cooperation in economy and trade. The Eritrean side hopes to, together with China, strengthen friendly cooperation in various fields, gain more benefits from the implementation of outcomes of the FOCAC Johannesburg Summit, and constantly elevate the level of bilateral cooperation. The country expects China to play a greater role in African and global affairs, and work with Eritrea to jointly safeguard the interests of the two countries as well as developing countries.

Both sides also exchanged in-depth views on international and regional issues of common concern.