Liu Yunshan (R), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, meets with Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka in Prague, the Czech Republic, July 18, 2017. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

PRAGUE, July 18 (Xinhua) -- China and the Czech Republic should push forward cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, senior Communist Party of China (CPC) official Liu Yunshan said on Tuesday.

Liu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, made the remarks while meeting with Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka. Liu is paying an official goodwill visit to the Czech Republic.

Noting the Czech Republic was one of the earliest countries recognizing and establishing diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, Liu hailed the two countries' increasingly closer high-level communication and strengthened political mutual trust.

Under the guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Czech counterpart Milos Zeman, China's relations with the Czech Republic are better than they have ever been, Liu said, adding that people from both sides have been deeply inspired.

He urged the two sides to seize the opportunities arising from the Belt and Road Initiative and "China-CEE 16+1 mechanism" to deepen mutually-beneficial cooperation and reap more achievements.

The China-CEE 16+1 mechanism is a platform created in April 2012 by China and 16 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.

Both countries, with a long history and abundant culture, have made impressive contributions to mankind's development and progress, Liu said, stressing that China is willing to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in fields such as culture, education, sports, tourism and Chinese medicine.

Sobotka, for his part, noted that his country's rapidly growing relations with China are guided by the two countries' leaders and driven by the Belt and Road Initiative.

Sobotka promised that his government would provide firm support for closer cooperation with China in trade, transportation, tourism, medical care and people-to-people exchanges, so as to continuously inject new vitality into bilateral ties.