Chilean ambassador Jorge Heine. Photo: Yin Yeping/GT

When many Chinese think about Chile, they think of the mysterious Easter Island, but there is much more to this South American country - including a close relationship with China. It's the No.1 supplier of copper, cherries and grapes, and the second-biggest supplier of wine and fresh fruit. Global Times (GT) sat down with Chilean ambassador Jorge Heine (Heine) to talk about what the countries can look forward to in the future.

GT: Chile was the first South American country to establish diplomatic relations with China, but it seems not many Chinese are familiar with your country. What would you like them to know about Chile?

Heine: Of all the countries in Latin America, Chile has grown the most in the past 25 years and is by now the most developed in the region, with a $15,000 per capita income. It thus offers great business opportunities for Chinese companies. Chile is also a prime tourist destination, with a great variety of fascinating landscapes, from the Atacama Desert up north all the way to Patagonia in the south, and the Central Valley and its Wine Route in the middle.

GT: Because it takes a long time to fly from China to South America, visitors often visit more than one country there. Will Chile cooperate with other South American countries to attract Chinese travelers?

Heine: The Pacific Alliance brings together Chile, Colombia, Peru and Mexico. We have undertaken some joint promotions in China, including one in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province last November. We are also developing programs to promote tourism packages for the four countries. Some have also suggested a joint visa scheme. My answer is one thing at a time - it's a good idea and we are moving in that direction.

GT: This year is the 45th anniversary of Sino-Chilean diplomatic relations. Have there been celebrations?

Heine: The major event of the year so far has been the visit of Premier Li Keqiang to Chile in May. As a result of the visit, 18 agreements were signed. Some of them are to avoid double taxation and another is to establish currency swaps between the Central Bank of Chile and the People's Bank of China. That will result in Chile becoming the regional platform for the Chinese yuan in Latin America.

There will be a Chile Week in China from August 23 to 28. A 150-strong delegation headed by former President Eduardo Frei, who will be joined by several Cabinet ministers as well as a number of business leaders and entrepreneurs will participate in various activities in Shanghai and Beijing. For Chile, China is the No.1 trading partner. We did $34 billion of trade with China last year. For China, Chile is the No.3 trading partner in Latin America. Chile has 28 percent of the world's copper and China consumes about 40 percent of the world's yearly output, so copper is very much at the core of our relationship. But there is quite an increase of other exports from Chile, particularly in fruit, wine, meat and seafood. Amazingly, Chile is now also exporting live cattle to China - this year about 20,000 Holstein cows have been shipped from Puerto Montt, in Southern Chile, to Tianjin, and bought by seven different dairy companies in China.

GT: How are you developing interactions between the countries?

Heine: There are three things that I want to do during my tenure. First, diversify our exports, especially towards food products (they were up by 50 percent in first quarter of 2015). Second, I want to increase investment from China to Chile, particularly in infrastructure and energy. Third, I want to increase people-to-people exchanges. One of the agreements signed this May by Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang eliminated tourist visa fees between Chile and China. In a unilateral measure, Chile has also announced that Chinese citizens with a US or Canadian visa that is valid for six months or more will not need a Chilean tourist visa. These measures, that came into effect on July 1, will make it cheaper and easier for Chinese citizens to visit Chile, and will hopefully increase the two-way tourist flow.