China's new leadership "highly values" friendship with Zimbabwe: vice premier HARARE, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang on Wednesday told Zimbabwean Vice President Joyce Mujuru that China's new leadership highly values the traditional friendship with Zimbabwe. Wang said his visit is to follow up to the African trip by Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this year and join Zimbabweans in efforts to push Sino-Zimbabwean cooperation in all fields to achieve "greater progress," according to a statement issued by the Chinese delegation. Wang said he believes China-Zimbabwe relations are certain to get a boost with the attention from leaders of both sides. In the past year, China-Zimbabwe cooperation gained new grounds, with bilateral trade exceeding 1 billion U.S. dollars and projects under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation proceeding smoothly, Wang said. Mujuru said she expects greater achievements in China- Zimbabwean cooperation, the statement said. The two sides signed economic and technological cooperation agreements after the meeting, it added.