Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad on 22 September announced the launch of the China-Syria strategic partnership during a meeting in the eastern city of Hangzhou.

"Today, we will jointly announce the establishment of the China-Syria strategic partnership, which will become an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations," Xi told Assad.

"Faced with an international situation full of instability and uncertainty, China is willing to continue to work together with Syria, firmly support each other, promote friendly cooperation, and jointly defend international fairness and justice," he added.

For his part, Assad expressed his "happiness"  at being invited to China, a country he says " stands with the just causes of the peoples … which form the basis of Chinese policy in international forums and which are based on the independence of countries, respect for the will of the people, and rejection of terrorism."