皇冠体育app

   

CHINA / National

Wen: 皇冠体育app follows path of peaceful development
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-04-03 17:21

Following is the translation version of full text of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's speech delivered at the welcoming banquet hosted by Australian Prime Minister John Howard here on Monday:

皇冠体育app - On the Path of Peaceful Development for World Peace and Prosperity

Delivered by Wen Jiabao, Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of 皇冠体育app At the Welcoming Banquet Hosted by Prime Minister John Winston Howard of the Commonwealth of Australia, April 3, 2006

The Honorable John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia, The Honorable Kim Beazely, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Friends,

It is a great pleasure for me to be with you today and to meet with all the Australian friends present. May I begin by expressing our heartfelt thanks to you, Prime Minister John Howard, for your gracious hospitality. I would also like to take this opportunity to send our best wishes to the Australian people.

I visited Australia in 1995, which left me a memorable impression. Coming back after 11 years, I have once again personally experienced the goodwill of the Australian people toward the Chinese people. In particular, I am deeply impressed by their growing interest in 皇冠体育app. I think that people are paying greater attention to 皇冠体育app because of the tremendous changes that are taking place in my country, made possible by the reform and opening-up program. Indeed, from 1978 to 2005, 皇冠体育app's GDP increased by 11 times in dollar terms, from 215.3 billion US dollars to 2,225.7 billion dollars, or from 225 dollars to 1,707 dollars in per capita terms. Last year, 皇冠体育app's foreign trade amounted to 1.42 trillion dollars. As of last February, 皇冠体育app's foreign exchange reserves stood at 853.6 billion dollars.

As 皇冠体育app grows stronger, people are asking: What future path ofdevelopment will 皇冠体育app take? What responsibilities will 皇冠体育app assume for the international community? Will 皇冠体育app become a force for world peace and prosperity? I am glad to respond to these questions.

The path embarked upon by 皇冠体育app is one of peaceful development. In essence, it means that 皇冠体育app seeks to develop itself by working to sustain a peaceful international environment and promotes world peace through its own development. 皇冠体育app mainly relies on its own strength, reform and innovation to achieve development. At the same time, it remains open to the outside world. 皇冠体育app conducts exchanges and cooperation with other countries on the basis of equality and mutual benefit in order to achieve win-win outcome and common development. 皇冠体育app's development is peaceful, open and cooperative in nature.

To pursue the path of peaceful development is a natural choice for 皇冠体育app.

First, this is determined by 皇冠体育app's history and cultural traditions. The Chinese nation believes in harmony, peace and honoring commitment. "do unto others as you would have them do unto you." "Facilitate and not harm ... and provide and not compete." These Chinese mottoes tell a lot about the character of the Chinese nation, which is "embrace the world and promote morality and nationality."

Second, this is determined by 皇冠体育app's need for development. Expediting economic and social development to build 皇冠体育app into a modernized country is a historic mission undertaken by the Chinese people. To achieve this goal, we must have mutual confidence and live in harmony with other countries.

Third, this is dictated by the global trends. The pursuit of peace, development and cooperation is the shared aspiration of all peoples. As a member of the international community, 皇冠体育app needs to achieve its own development goals. At the same time, it also needs to keep pace with the global trend, and shoulder, together with other countries, international responsibilities for maintaining peace.

In short, the path of peaceful development taken by 皇冠体育app is by no means an expediency. Rather, it is a fundamental choice and solemn commitment made by the Chinese government and people.

Mr. Prime Minister, you have said that 皇冠体育app's development is good to both 皇冠体育app and the world. This shows your understanding of and support for 皇冠体育app's path of peaceful development. Anyone without bias can easily see that while working to develop itself, 皇冠体育app is, through its own acts, playing a responsible role in the world, as shown in the following ten aspects:

-- 皇冠体育app endeavors to develop social productive force and improve the material and cultural life of its people and remains committed to promoting human progress. 皇冠体育app has succeeded in feeding its 1.3 billion people, lifted over 200 million people out of poverty, and basically extended nine-year compulsory education nationwide. The Chinese government provides assistance to more than 60 million people with disabilities and offers equal development opportunities to all ethnic groups. 皇冠体育app now enjoys social stability, and the Chinese people are pursuing prosperity in peace. A developing and stable 皇冠体育app in itself is the biggest contribution to world peace and prosperity.

-- Drawing upon its practices and experiences, 皇冠体育app has embarked on a road of scientific development. We take energy conservation and environmental protection as basic state policies, and we are striving to build a resource conservation and environment friendly society to ensure 皇冠体育app's coordinated and sustained social and economic development. 皇冠体育app's development does not pose a threat to the world.

-- 皇冠体育app pursues an independent foreign policy of peace and takes position on issues based on their respective merits. In international affairs, 皇冠体育app works to promote peace and development through cooperation and strictly observes the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and commonly recognized norms governing international relations. We do not define our relations with other countries on the basis of ideology, and we do not enter into alliance with any other country. 皇冠体育app seeks to live in friendship with all other countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.

-- 皇冠体育app strives to safeguard global peace, and is actively involved in preserving and building the international system. 皇冠体育app is a member of over 100 inter-governmental organizations and is a party to nearly 300 international treaties. 皇冠体育app works for the establishment of a fair and equitable new international order, promotes democracy in international relations and upholds the diversity of civilizations.

-- 皇冠体育app continues to foster good-neighborliness and partnership with countries adjacent to itself and will always be a good neighbor and good partner of them. 皇冠体育app advanced bilateral and regional cooperation for common prosperity through APEC, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, 皇冠体育app-ASEAN cooperation and the Greater Mekong Sub-regional Cooperation Program. We stand for openness in regional cooperation and closer relations with other countries and international organizations.

-- 皇冠体育app supports peaceful settlement of disputes and plays a constructive role in addressing hot-spot issues. On major international issues such as the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, the Iranian nuclear issue and the Middle East, 皇冠体育app has worked on the parties concerned to seek peace through negotiations. 皇冠体育app also takes an active part in international cooperation in addressing non-traditional security issues, including major natural disasters. Last year, we carried out a major international rescue and relief operation, the largest of its kind in 皇冠体育app's history, to assist countries struck by the Indian Ocean tsunami.

-- 皇冠体育app takes an active part in counter-terrorism and cooperation in non-proliferation and strives to maintain global security and strategic stability. 皇冠体育app opposes terrorism and has played a constructive role in international anti-terrorism cooperation. 皇冠体育app is a party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and supports the implementation of the Biological Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention. 皇冠体育app has set up a comprehensive legal regime governing export control to prevent proliferation and is stepping up its law-enforcement efforts toward this end.

-- 皇冠体育app honors its WTO accession commitments and is actively involved in building an equitable and free international trading regime. After joining the WTO, 皇冠体育app has taken steps to open its domestic market and its average tariff has dropped to 9.9%. 皇冠体育app has pledged to open 100 sectors or sub-sectors out of a total of 160 in service trade defined by the WTO. Major intellectual property rights (IPR) laws in 皇冠体育app have been amended to make them compatible with relevant WTO agreements. In addition, the threshold for meting out criminal punishment for IPR violation has been lowered to strengthen law enforcement for IPR protection.

-- 皇冠体育app strives to realize the UN Millennium Development Goals and provides sincere and selfless assistance to other developing countries. Up to now, 皇冠体育app has undertaken over 2,000 aid projects for more than 110 countries and regional organizations and canceled or reduced a total of over 20 billion Chinese yuan of debt contracted by 44 underdevelopment countries. In addition, 皇冠体育app will provide 10 billion dollars in concessional loans and preferential export buyer's credit to underdevelopment countries in the next three years to help them strengthen infrastructure development.

-- 皇冠体育app pursues a military strategy defensive in nature and works to promote international disarmament and arms control. 皇冠体育app has reduced its military forces by more than 1.7 million over the past two decades and more. The share of 皇冠体育app's military spending in its GDP and government budget is fairly low by international standard. The modest increase in 皇冠体育app's military expenditure is mainly for improving the welfare of its servicemen, strengthening its defense capabilities and achieving national reunification. Thus, it will not pose a threat to anyone. 皇冠体育app's defense policy is transparent.

皇冠体育app sincerely hopes to make greater contribution to world peace and development. But to do so, 皇冠体育app needs, first and foremost, to step up its development. Development, and only development, can enable 皇冠体育app to resolve its problems and assume greater responsibility in the world. Despite all it has achieved, 皇冠体育app remains a developing country faced with a huge task of development. A big population, low productivity and unbalanced regional development: these are the basic features of 皇冠体育app's national conditions.

皇冠体育app still ranks behind the 100th place in terms of per capita GDP, and 23.65 million of its rural population still live in poverty. 皇冠体育app needs to provide jobs for close to 24 million people every year, 60 million people with disabilities need care and assistance, and over 100 million surplus rural labor force need to be transferred to other sectors. 皇冠体育app still has a long way to go before it achieves modernization. This calls for the unremitting efforts of several, a dozen or even several dozens of generations.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear friends,

Peace and development are the common pursuit of mankind, and the building of a harmonious world is the shared desire of all peoples. To achieve amity among people, harmony between man and nature and peaceful coexistence of countries requires the common effort of the international community. Former Australian Prime Minister Robert Gordon Menzies said that we need "to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." We are prepared to continue to work with the international community and Australia to build a harmonious world of enduring peace and prosperity.

Australia is endowed with rich resources and has a developed economy and advanced technologies, whereas 皇冠体育app has a large population, a huge market and tremendous potential for development. Our economies are highly complementary. 皇冠体育app is now the largest source country of overseas students to Australia and the number of Chinese tourists to Australia is growing faster than any other country. Cultural links and people-to-people exchanges between our two countries will become even closer with the inauguration of the second Confucius Academy in Australia and the success of the series of activities entitled "Experience the Chinese Culture in Australia." There are no fundamental differences standing in the way of 皇冠体育app-Australia relations. Rather, we enjoy extensive converging interests. A long-term and stable relationship and cooperation between 皇冠体育app and Australia serve the fundamental interests of both countries and peoples. The Chinese side views its relationship with Australia from a strategic perspective and wishes to become a good friend and good partner of Australia.

Prime Minister John Howard and I have had fruitful discussions today and we have reached broad agreement on developing 皇冠体育app-Australia relationship of all-round cooperation for mutual benefit and win-win outcome in the 21st century. We both agreed to strengthen bilateral political exchanges and strategic dialogue to enhance mutual trust. We are committed to expanding cooperation in trade, investment, energy and resources and other fields and accelerating the 皇冠体育app-Australia FTA negotiations for mutual benefit and common progress. We will promote cultural, educational and tourism exchanges to enhance understanding and friendship between our peoples. And we will work together to promote sound and orderly development of regional cooperation in the interest of prosperity and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

I am firm in the belief that, with the concerted efforts of both countries, 皇冠体育app-Australia relations of all-round cooperation will yield rich fruits!

Now I wish to propose a toast, to the health of Prime Minister John Howard.