On the afternoon of April 20, 2004, Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan held talks with Sheik Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, at the Diaoyutai State Guest Hotel.

Tang said that China attaches great importance to the visit by Sheik Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan and believes that this visit will help promote mutual understanding, deepen friendship and boost cooperation between the two countries.

Hamdan stressed that both UAE President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and the UAE government place a high priority on developing relations with China in all fields, including political affairs, economy, trade, science and technology, and hope to explore new channels for development of UAE-China relations through counterpart talks between the delegation and related departments of China. Hamdan also reiterated that the UAE adheres to the one-China policy, which is a set position of the UAE.

The two sides also exchanged views and reached consensus on issues of common interest, such as relations between China and the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Iraqi and the Middle East situation.