On the morning of April 9, 2018, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl of Austria, who was accompanying President of Austria on a visit to China in Beijing.

Wang Yi expressed that President Alexander Van der Bellen headed a large high-level delegation including the Chancellor for a state visit to China this time, fully showing Austria's strong will to develop its relations with China. President Xi Jinping and President Alexander Van der Bellen jointly announced the establishment of China-Austria friendly strategic partnership, which becomes an important milestone and a new starting point for the bilateral relations. Leaders of the two countries have made a top-level design for bilateral cooperation and reached a series of important consensus, which will further release the great potential for cooperation between the two countries.

Wang Yi said that he hopes Austria will continue to actively promote the development of China-Europe relations, as well as support and participate in cooperation between China and the Central and Eastern European countries. China is willing to, together with Austria, maintain communication, jointly resist trade protectionism and safeguard an open world economy so as to inject positive energy into the current world full of uncertainties.

Karin Kneissl noted that Austria-China relations have reached a very high level. Austria is willing to take the state visit of President Alexander Van der Bellen to China as an opportunity to make joint efforts with China to well implement various consensus reached by the two heads of state, so as to promote the constant and forward-looking development of Austria-China friendly strategic partnership.

Both sides also exchanged views on international and regional topics of common interest.