On November 13, Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan, who was attending the 56th session of the UN General Assembly, met with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan at the UN headquarters.

Tang first congratulated Annan on his appointment by the UN General Assembly as the UN Secretary General for a second time and on his winning this year's Nobel Peace Prize together with the UN.

Tang said that the UN plays an indispensable role on the issues of peace and development. The Chinese government will support the work of the UN and the Secretary General as always.

On the Afghan issue, Tang said that the most urgent and important task at present is to step up the humanitarian relief efforts to Afghanistan and to speed up the arrangements for the future government in Afghanistan. The UN should and can play a dominant role on the current Afghan issue.

Annan thanked Tang for his congratulations about his second term as UN Secretary General and winning the Nobel Peace Prize with the UN. Annan also thanked Tang for his attendance at the UN General Assembly session and discussions with other leaders on the acute issues of Afghan, anti-terrorism, and development in the UN.

Annan said that with support from countries like China, the UN is confident of success in solving the above-mentioned issues. He also happily recalled his visit to China and meetings with Chinese leaders.