Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) meets with British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in Beijing, capital of China, July 30, 2018. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)??

BEIJING, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in Beijing Monday, hailing the positive progress in China-UK ties and substantial cooperation in all areas.

Li said that as permanent members of the UN Security Council and two of the world's major economies, China and Britain have the responsibility to uphold the international order and systems based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core.

"China and Britain should jointly adhere to multilateralism, safeguard an open world economy, and add constructive forces for stability in the world," Li said during the meeting.

China expects to advance all-round development of bilateral relations and cooperation with Britain, in a principle of mutual respect and equal treatment, Li stressed.

He called on the two sides to make a good use of each other's advantages and expand cooperation in various areas, and take the opportunity of the launch of the Shanghai-London Stock Connect within the year to cultivate new growth points for cooperation and achieve win-win results.

"China will work to create a better business environment for foreign companies in the country, including those from Britain," Li said, hoping Britain to provide a sound system guarantee for Chinese companies to invest in the United Kingdom.

Hunt, who was on his first China visit as British foreign secretary, hailed the development of "Golden Era" of bilateral relations.

Britain looks forward to the annual meeting of the two heads of government next year, and is willing to continue cementing political trust with China and synergizing development strategies, said Hunt.

Given the international situation stands at a critical point, Britain and China should enhance communication and coordination, jointly uphold multilateralism, free trade, and safeguard the international order based on rules, he said.

Hunt co-chaired the ninth China-UK Strategic Dialogue with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi Monday.