The Embassy of China in Bangladesh Thursday opened an online book of condolence on its Facebook page to pay respect to former president Jiang Zemin, who supported economic reforms that led to a decade of explosive growth in the East Asian country. Jiang, 96, died of leukaemia and multiple organ failure at 12:13pm on November 30 in Shanghai, where he was a former mayor, according to Xinhua News Agency. Read: PM sends condolences at death of Jiang Zemin The embassy invited people from all walks of life in Bangladesh to express their condolences and pay tribute to Jiang, also former general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and former chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the CPC and former  chairman of the CMC, till December 6.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday expressed her condolences and sympathies to Chinese President Xi Jinping at the sad demise of the country's former president, Jiang Zemin. In a letter she said: "We pray for the eternal peace of the departed soul. Our prayers and thoughts are also with the bereaved members of family, and we pray that they may be able to overcome their irreparable loss. We, in Bangladesh, stand beside the government and the friendly people of China at this time of mourning.” In the letter, as per a press release from PMO press wing, Sheikh Hasina reiterated that Bangladesh and China are time-tested development partners and enjoy friendly relations with the ‘Strategic Partnership of Cooperation’. Read: PM expresses condolences at passing of Monzur E Mawla She recalled that the friendly relations between the two countries were greatly strengthened during the tenure of former President Jiang Zemin. She expressed her confidence that bilateral relations between the two counties would continue to flourish and strengthen in the days ahead.