Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Sunday met with Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) meets with Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 2, 2018. [Photo/Xinhua]

China commends Mauritius for adhering to the one-China principle, Li said.

Noting that Chinese and Mauritian economies are highly complementary with broad prospects for cooperation, Li said China is ready to work with Mauritius to push for a bilateral free trade agreement at an early date, and defend multilateralism and free trade.

The two sides should also enhance international cooperation on tackling climate change and take into consideration reasonable concerns of small island nations, the premier said.

For his part, Jugnauth expressed his country's commitment to enhancing bilateral relations and Africa-China ties. He also extended gratitude to China for offering Mauritius support and help in infrastructure and financing areas, and said that Chinese enterprises are welcome to invest in Mauritius and take it as a platform for developing businesses with Africa.

After the meeting, Li and Jugnauth witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents.