On August 20th, Mme. Li Xiaolin, President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), met with Mr. Pat Breen, Chairman of the Oireachtas (Parliament of Ireland) Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade and the accompanying Irish Ambassador to China, Paul Kavanagh.

Mme. Li introduced the CPAFFC’s contribution to enhancing friendly exchanges between China and foreign countries in past 60 years since the Association’s founding. She said that the CPAFFC has established friendly and cooperative relations with nearly 500 non-governmental organizations and institutions in 158 countries, and promoted the establishment of more than 2100 pairs of friendship cities between Chinese and foreign local governments.

Chairman Breen thanked Mme. Li for meeting him. He introduced the Irish development in the field of agriculture, economy, culture, and tourism, and expressed the willingness to promote Ireland-China friendly exchanges, strengthen contacts between the Irish parliament and the CPAFFC, and promote practical cooperation. He formally invited Mme. Li to visit Ireland.

Vice President Li Jianping, Director General Song Jingwu of the European and Asian Department, and Deputy Director General Zhang Ruoning attended the meeting.