Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear friends,

I am delighted to visit Britain and attend the opening ceremony of CHINA NOW at the beginning of the Chinese New Year. May I extend, on behalf of the Chinese Government, warm congratulations on the opening of CHINA NOW. I also wish to say a big thank you to friends from the British business community for hosting this event and to all those who have worked so hard in both China and Britain to make the event possible.

From today till the opening of the Beijing Olympic Games, CHINA NOW which features over 800 activities, covering art, education, economy and trade, science and technology and sports, will be carried out in over 20 cities in the U.K. CHINA NOW will be an unprecedented event in China-U.K. exchanges in terms of its scale, duration, level of participation and the activities involved. It offers a platform for the two countries to have sincere exchanges that transcend differences in language, religion, national conditions and culture. It also gives concrete expression to efforts made by China and Britain to promote dialogue among civilizations and cultural diversity in the world.

The Chinese Government, like the British Government, attaches great importance and gives full support to this creative initiative. We will work with you to deepen understanding and friendship between our two peoples through the hosting of CHINA NOW. And we should make China-U.K. cultural exchanges a good example for promoting cultural enrichment, expanding common ground while putting aside differences and human progress.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The year 2008 will be a remarkable year for China. We will host the Olympic Games in Beijing and celebrate the 30th anniversary of the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy.

The pursuit of reform and opening-up policy in the past 30 years has brought about historical changes in China.

First, China has embarked on a path of development that suits its national conditions, that is, the path of building socialism with distinctive Chinese features. It is a path that conforms to the trend of the times. It is aimed at building socialist market economy, democracy, culture and a harmonious society. Following this path, China, a developing nation with 1.3 billion people, has shaken off poverty and is now moving toward modernization.

Second, China has maintained sustained and fast economic growth and its economic strength has increased considerably. Growing at an average annual rate of 9.7 percent, China's GDP has increased by 16 times in the past 30 years, jumping from the 15th to the fourth place in the world. China's imports and exports have seen a 100-time increase during the same period, raising China from the 32nd to the third largest trading nation.

Third, life has been significantly improved for the Chinese people, who just managed to meet basic needs in the past now begin to enjoy general prosperity. China's per capital GDP has grown by nearly 10 times, from $226 to $2,100. Over 200 million Chinese have been lifted out of poverty. China has successfully met the basic needs of its population, which accounts for 23 percent of the world total.

Fourth, the Chinese society is undergoing profound transformation. The Chinese culture is thriving as never before, and the ethical standards of the whole society have been improved. Cultural exchanges with other countries are also growing robustly.

China's economic foundation is still not strong enough and these achievements cannot yet fully meet the need of a big population of 1.3 billion. China's GDP is just 5.7 percent of the world total and the country ranks after the 100th place in terms of per capita GDP. More than 20 million people remain poor and 100 million people still live on less than one U.S. dollar a day. With only 9 percent of the world's arable land and one fourth of natural resources in per capita terms, China needs to ensure that 23 percent of the world population has enough food and other basic necessities.

China faces enormous pressure in terms of population, employment, living standards, resources, energy and the environment. Some of the challenges it has encountered in social development are rarely met by other countries. It will take the efforts of several or even a dozen generations to build China into a modern and medium-level developed country. We are fully confident in China's future, at the same time, we are keenly aware of the difficulties and challenges that lie ahead. Our mission is an arduous one and we still have a long way to go.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The past 30 years of reform and opening-up have also brought about historical changes in China's relations with the rest of the world.

China, once a closed and semi-closed society, has opened itself to the outside world. It is an active participant in international and regional cooperation, and it has become a major engine propelling global economic growth. It has established extensive contacts with the international community and taken an active part in international and regional affairs. Faithfully fulfilling its international obligations and playing a responsible and constructive role, China is now an important force for maintaining world peace and promoting common development.

Any country that wants to develop itself should not only rely on its own efforts, but also carry out reform and opening-up and pursue win-win progress and common development with other countries. This is the conclusion we have drawn from the success of China's development endeavors. And we are keenly aware that in this increasingly globalized world China's future is inseparably bound up with the future of the world. Embracing the world and future, we have undertaken the following solemn commitments:

China will stay on the course of peaceful development. It strives to foster a peaceful international environment to develop itself and is committed to promoting global peace with its own development.

China will unswervingly pursue a comprehensive opening-up strategy for win-win progress. While working to develop itself, China will respond to the legitimate concerns of other countries and uphold the common interests of mankind. We will endeavor to enable economic globalization to produce prosperity for all.

China will meet new challenges and problems it has encountered in the course of reform and opening-up in the new era and move up the value chain as it participates in economic globalization. We will reduce trade imbalances by changing the pattern of trade growth and improving trade mix at a faster pace. We will also take resolute measures to ensure product quality and food safety and protect intellectual property rights.

China will promote the building of a harmonious world of enduring peace and common prosperity. We will intensify cooperation with other countries in the political, economic, cultural, security, environment and other fields, honor our due obligations, and contribute our share to meeting new global challenges.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The past 30 years have also seen rapid and sustained growth of China-U.K. relations. China-U.K. trade volume, which was less than $1 billion in 1978, jumped to $39.4 billion last year, a nearly 40-time increase. In the early days of China's opening to the outside world, there were fewer than 100 Chinese and British students in each other's country. Today, nearly 100,000 Chinese students are studying in Britain and over 1,000 British students are studying in China. There were few mutual visits in the late 1970s whereas now several thousand people are on daily flights between the two countries. The growing China-U.K. relations are bringing huge benefits to the two peoples.

As the world continues to undergo profound changes and China's modernization drive gains momentum, the future holds broad prospects for China-U.K. relations. During Prime Minister Gordon Brown's successful visit to China last month, the leaders of the two countries reached extensive new agreement on strengthening bilateral ties, thus taking our relations to a new stage of development. The two sides set the target of increasing bilateral trade to $60 billion by 2010, decided to set up a youth exchange mechanism and agreed to enhance cooperation in education, scientific research, culture, health, Olympics, energy, climate change, sustainable development and international finance. All these fully demonstrate the breadth and depth of China-U.K. relations.

The concluding observation I wish to make is that the foundation of China-U.K. cooperation is stronger than ever before, our shared interests are more extensive than ever before, and our relations are more important than ever before. We should seize common opportunities and strengthen cooperation, and we should work together to meet common challenges. Let us make cultural exchanges a bridge to deepen mutual understanding. Let us draw inspiration from cultural exchanges to expand common interests. And let us enrich our bilateral ties through boosting these exchanges. With our joint efforts, China-U.K. comprehensive strategic partnership will grow stronger, cover more areas, and it will bring greater benefits to our two peoples and contribute more to world peace and development.

Let me propose a toast-

To the success of "CHINA NOW,"

To the development and prosperity of the City of London, and

To the health of the Lord Mayor and all the friends present here.

Cheers!

(Source: www.fmprc.gov.cn)