BEIJING, Nov. 10(Xinhuanet)-- As a friendly neighbor of South Asia, China is willing to strengthen cooperation with South Asian countries to achieve common prosperity, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said here Thursday.

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC) will hold its 13th summit on Nov. 12 in Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, and China wishes the summit great success, Liu said.

Since the SAARC was set up 20 years ago, it has played an important role in promoting economic and social development in the South Asian region. China hopes the SAARC will make greater achievements in pushing forward regional cooperation, he said.

The SAARC summit was originally to be held in Dhaka from Jan. 9to 11. But it was postponed due to the impact of the Dec. 26 tsunami that devastated its three member states-- Sri Lanka, India and the Maldives.

It was then rescheduled for Feb. 6-7, but was again canceled as India refused to attend it due to the political situation in Nepal and the security situation in Bangladesh.

The SAARC, established in December 1985, has seven member states, namely India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives. Enditem