Li calls for closer China-Latin America cooperation at spiritual level

China and Latin America should promote cooperation at the spiritual level along with their fruitful collaboration at the physical level, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said here Friday.

Speaking at a symposium on China-Latin America cultural exchange, which was also attended by Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, Li noted that Beijing and Bogota reached an array of agreements on bilateral practical cooperation during his visit.

Yet China's cooperation with Colombia and the broader Latin America is not only at the physical level but also at the spiritual level, and the latter merits even more attention, he told the 100-strong audience.

Noting that China and Latin America both boast a splendid ancient civilization and serve as excellent models for the harmonious coexistence of different cultures, he suggested the two sides continue to respect the diversity of civilizations.

Meanwhile, he called for innovative and valiant efforts to build a society where the people generate and share creative ideas so as to both produce material wealth and fulfill people's spiritual pursuits.

In addition, Li proposed to bring to full play the role of literature as a potent medium of heart-to-heart communication, pointing out that culture and literature exchange is an important component of international relations and an effect way to promote mutual understanding between different peoples.

He encouraged writers and artists of China and Colombia to create more excellent works, hold more dialogues, learn from each other, and thus help make the win-win cooperation between China and Latin America more fruitful.

For his part, Santos said the Colombian people hold a profound feeling toward China and its 5,000-year-old civilization, and numerous famous writers such as Colombian Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez admire the time-honored Chinese culture and language.

He added that he is confident the two countries' artists, by strengthening communication and learning from each other, can cement mutual understanding between the two peoples and help advance the relationship between Latin America and China.

Colombia is the second leg of Li's ongoing four-nation Latin America tour, which also includes Brazil, Peru and Chile. This year marks the 35 anniversary of China-Colombia diplomatic relations.