ADDIS ABABA, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) has a "very strong" partnership with China based on mutual respect, a senior AU official told Xinhua on Monday.

"We have very strong partnership with China, and we work in different fields of our cooperation with China," said AU Director for Political Affairs Khabele Matlosa.

The partnership is based on mutual benefit and should be sustained and further strengthened, Matlosa said on the sidelines of the 30th AU summit, in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia.

"Going forward, we have to stick to the principle of mutual respect, mutual trust, and mutual benefit, so that both sides benefit from this partnership," said the director.

Matlosa noted that terrorism is a major threat to peace and security as well as governance and development in Africa.

"Therefore, we need to also partner with different actors, including China, to address this menace on the continent," he added.