On October 18, 2011, Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun met with visiting Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Jawed Ludin, and Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin held talks with him. The two sides spoke highly of the traditional friendship between China and Afghanistan. The Chinese side expressed firm support for Afghanistan's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and willingness of continuing to provide assistance within its capacity for Afghanistan's peaceful reconstruction. The Afghan side thanked China for its support and indicated willingness of working with China to push forward the bilateral exchanges and cooperation. The two sides also exchanged opinions on the Afghan situation and the international community's assistance to Afghanistan.