President says he's ready to join G20 leaders to steer global economy

President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that he stands ready to work with the G20 leaders to uphold the spirit of partnership to steer the world economy, while deepening the bilateral relationship with Argentina, during his visit to the South American country.

Xi made the remarks in a statement released on Thursday after he arrived in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. He will attend the 13th G20 Leaders' Summit from Friday to Saturday, and make a state visit to Argentina.

Xi said he is ready to uphold the all-in-the-same-boat spirit and, together with other world leaders, steer the "boat" of the world economy from the Rio de la Plata of Argentina toward the wide oceans. He also wished the summit success.

Noting that China and Argentina are sincere friends that trust each other and good partners that benefit each other, Xi said the two countries support their own paths of development and remain committed to deepening friendly cooperation and coordination in international and regional affairs.

He also said he looked forward to having extensive exchanges with Argentine President Mauricio Macri and people from all walks of life in the country, and jointly opening a new era for the China-Argentina comprehensive strategic partnership.

As the South American country hosts the G20 Summit for the first time, it has made all-out efforts to prepare for the event. Banners for the summit have been erected on the main streets of the capital city, and security measures have been strengthened for the event.

To ease traffic during the summit, residents of Buenos Aires were given a holiday on Friday for the start of the leaders' meeting in the capital.

The summit's International Media Center opened on Thursday, with thousands of journalists from international media accredited to report on the event. An unidentified Japanese reporter told China Daily that besides the G20 Summit, he will also particularly follow the expected meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the summit.

Liu Dongping, president of the Confucius Institute of the University of Buenos Aires, said he expects Xi's visit to Argentina will help make the relations between China and Argentina much closer at the governmental level.

Liu said an increasing number of Argentines want to learn about China, as they consider the Asian country a vast market and a role model for economic growth.

"Though the two countries are far apart, economic and cultural bonds are becoming closer, so it is more important than ever before to push the bilateral ties through trade and investment, and more important, through cultural and people-to-people exchanges."

Pablo Alejandro Garzonio, undersecretary of the Institution of International Relations and Cooperation at the Buenos Aires City Legislature, said he hoped the leaders could reach consensus at the summit on the various issues challenging the world, to benefit world peace and development.

China is a model for Argentina regarding economic development, and it is hoped that Xi's visit will promote cooperation between the two countries, as Argentina can increase exports of agricultural products and China can bring technology and investment in infrastructure, he added.

Xi made his first state visit to the South American country in 2014. Argentina is the second stop of Xi's Europe and Latin America trip.