HE Mr. Chen Yuan, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC National Committee,
Dear Mr. John Hayes, Parliamentary Private Secretary for Foreign Affairs,
Dear fellow Chinese, distinguished guests and friends,
Good evening.
As Mr. Wang Anshi, the famous poet in the Song Dynasty wrote, “blown away from us is the old year by firecrackers, flown in the Tusu house is the warmth of the spring wind.”
In two weeks' time, we are going to embrace the traditional Chinese Spring Festival. In this joyful and festive atmosphere, we are very delighted to have the CPPCC delegation led by Vice Chairman Chen Yuan, to visit New Zealand and greet the local Chinese. Their arrival brings us the warm greetings from homeland.
Spring Festival is a time for family reunion, and a time for checking the past year's harvest and looking into the next year. Today, with the coming of the Year of the Horse, we joined together to review the fruitful results of the development of the China-New Zealand relations in the past year and look into the broad prospect of our friendly cooperation in the new year.
The year 2013 was a very important year on the course of China's development. The sessions of the National People's Congress and the CPPCC elected the new leadership of the country. The 3rd Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee made a historical decision to comprehensively deepen the reform, drawing a new blueprint for China's further development. The new leadership with Mr. Xi Jinping as General Secretary, put forward the Chinese Dream, to achieve national prosperity and rejuvenation and the people's happiness. The Chinese people are now working hard with full confidence to achieve the goal.
The year 2013 has also witnessed the fruitful development of China-New Zealand relations. There have been frequent high-level exchanges and the political mutual trust between two countries has been strengthened tremendously. Economic and trade cooperation is encouraging. According to New Zealand statistics, from January to November last year, the bilateral trade is 16.4 billion NZ dollars. For the first time historically, China becomes New Zealand's biggest trade partner and second biggest market for overseas tourists, while continues to be the top resource for international students. The pragmatic cooperation of various aspects is deepened and people-to-people links become closer and closer.
We’re proud to say that the bilateral relations are in the golden era of all-round development. China-New Zealand relationship is the model for the bilateral relations between China and other developed countries. Vice Chairman Chen Yuan's visit to New Zealand this time will surely inject new vitality to the development of our bilateral relations.
The friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and New Zealand is conducive to the common prosperity and development of two countries and is in the fundamental interests of two countries and two peoples. The Chinese government will unswervingly keep pushing forward the partnership of comprehensive cooperation with New Zealand, deepen pragmatic cooperation in the political, economic, investment, educational, tourist, cultural and scientific areas, making China and New Zealand become a mutually beneficial and win-win destiny community.
The whole year's work depends on a good start in spring. Looking back, we are proud of the past year of hard work. Looking forward, we are full of confidence for the bright new year. Wish China and New Zealand be prosperous and their people at peace. Wish our bilateral relations develop further. Wish our great country keep thriving and the cross-strait relations develop to a new level.
For a long time, the local Chinese, Chinese companies and Chinese students in New Zealand has played a constructive role in the development of the bilateral relations. I would like to extend, on behalf of the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand, our heartfelt thanks to all friends who have made unremitting efforts and contribution to the promotion of China-New Zealand friendship, to China's modernization and peaceful reunification. And wish all of you present tonight a very happy, prosperous and healthy new year!
Thank you!