On 4 November 2013, State Councilor Yang Jiechi met with Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond and his delegation, who are visiting China at the invitation of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries at the Zhongnanhai compound.

      Yang Jiechi gave a brief overview of the current China-UK relations and said that China attaches importance to developing friendly relations with Scotland and appreciates the Scottish government's commitment to cooperation with China. The two sides had a friendly discussion on enhancing economic, cultural, non-governmental exchanges and cooperation between China's municipal and provincial administrations and the Scottish government.