Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon left for China on Monday, and is expected to meet with his Chinese counterpart Zhai Jun, other senior officials and experts, in a bid to solidify bilateral and commercial ties between the two countries, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Ayalon told Xinhua in an exclusive interview before leaving that ties between Israel and China, which is about to celebrate its 18th anniversary, is "excellent." He added "We can learn a lot from China."

Ayalon, who is to kick off his second tour of China, said "both societies admire and respect traditions, and are very long and ancient civilizations. This, together with the current interest in globalization, of an explosion of technology, the synergy between the economies put China and Israel on a very, very good track."

China is Israel's third largest trading partner after the United States and India, and according to latest figures from Israel's Export and International Cooperation Institute, the Jewish state exported some 755 million U.S. dollars worth of goods to China in the first half of 2010.

"We can also cooperate a lot in science, in trade and commerce and in many, many things that we're already cooperating, we're very proud that the cooperation between China and Israel has gone up tremendously," Ayalon said.

Israel and China of late have agreed to ease tourism visa requirements for Chinese visiting Israel, that Israel will help Chinese farmers develop agricultural techniques, and Israeli Agency for International Development Cooperation will help build demonstration dairy farms in China's northern province, among other agreements.