Visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao and Uzbek President Islam Karimov met in Ashgabat on?Sunday to discuss the development of relations between their two countries.

Visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) meets with Uzbek President Islam Karimov in Ashgabat, capital of Turkmenistan, on Dec. 13, 2009.[Xinhua Photo]

The two leaders were to exchange views on bilateral relations and regional and international issues of common interest, Chinese diplomats told Xinhua.

Hu is in Ashgabat for a working visit at the invitation of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.

As guests of President Berdymukhamedov, President Hu, Uzbek President Karimov and Kazak President Nursultan Nazarbayev will participate in a ceremony to inaugurate the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline Monday.

One of two sections of the pipeline has been completed and the other section is expected to be operational next year.

The 1,833-kilometer pipeline starts at the border between Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and runs through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before reaching northwest China's Xinjiang region.

Since China and Uzbekistan established diplomatic relations in 1992, the two countries have seen smooth development of bilateral ties. Leaders of the two countries have maintained frequent contacts, and bilateral cooperation has developed in all sectors.

Two-way trade between China and Uzbekistan grew 14.6 percent year-on-year to 1.6 billion U.S. dollars in the first 10 months of this year.

China and Uzbekistan have conducted close cooperation in the fight against the "three evil forces" of separatism, extremism and terrorism.