Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome all of you to join us in celebrating the 68th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.
How time flies! On 29th September last year when we celebrated the 67th National Day of the People's Republic of China, I mentioned the Opus 67, the Symphony No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven. I expressed that China wished to "compose" together with the rest of the world the Symphony of the Community of Shared Future for Mankind. Today, I shall say that, in retrospect, China has made positive contributions to the Symphony.
Over the past 68 years since its founding, especially in the past 40 years since its reform and opening-up, China, under the leadership of the Communist Party, has succeeded in embarking on a development path that suits itself by drawing on the practice,experiences and lessons of other countries and civilizations. Great successes have been achieved and historical leaps forward have been made. In the particular five years since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Chinese people have been working hard towards the Two Centenary Goals, i.e. to complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the Communist Party of China in 2021, and to turn China into a prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious modern socialist country by the centenary of the People's Republic of China in 2049. Greater progress has been made and the outlook of China has been changing from year to year, making great contribution to the progress of mankind.
In 2017, China maintained social stability, promoted economic development and leveled up its people's living standards. With that, China played a positive role in enhancing peace, stability and development of the world.
In 2017, China successfully hosted the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation and the Ninth BRICS Summit, making greater contribution to the reform and improvement of a fairer, more inclusive and sustainable global governance system by proposing more Chinese approaches and sharing more Chinese wisdom.
In 2017, China kept the momentum of growth in export and import trade. As the second largest economy in the world, accounting for 15 percent of the world's GDP, Chinese economy contributes more than 30% of the world economic growth. China's infrastructure investment accounts for 1/3 of the world's total. China's outbound tourism keeps growing in a fast pace, with 62 million Chinese traveled abroad in the first half of 2017 alone. China provided new momentum for the world economic recovery.
In 2017, the relationship between China and Iceland achieved new development in the fields of politics, economy, trade, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, bilateral cooperation and friendship being deepened. China and Iceland have set up a good example of developing relations between countries with different area, population, economic scales and social systems. Our bilateral cooperation is one of the important movements of the Symphony of the Community of Mankind. The new achievements in our bilateral relations are due to the support of our two governments and two peoples. I wish to take this opportunity to thank the people from all walks of life for their efforts in promoting China-Iceland relations.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The world today is far from tranquil. It is not easy to compose the Symphony of the Community of Shared Future for Mankind. Looking around, we will find that over 190 countries and 7 billion people on earth are more interdependent, their interests are more closely interwoven and their destinies are more inseparable than any time in history. Peace and development have become the common wish, which shall be the main theme of the Symphony of the Community of Mankind. The outdated cold-war-mindset, zero-sum-mindset and single-win-mindset must be abandoned. All countries should seek win-win cooperation, promote common development and prosperity on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and strengthen exchanges and mutual understanding and learn from each other among different civilizations. Countries should establish a new type of relationship that is more equitable and balanced, stick together in times of difficulty, share rights and shoulder obligations, and boost the common interests of mankind. Only in that way can the fortissimo of the Symphony of the Community of Shared Future for Mankind be attained. China will work together with other countries, including Iceland, to uphold the great historical course.
Ladies and gentlemen,
In 20 days, the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China will be open in Beijing. It is a very important political event in China. The Congress will elect a new session of central collective leadership of the Party. It will draw blueprints and policies according to the requirements of the times, guiding the Chinese people of all ethnic groups to strive toward the Two Centenary Goals. We are fully confident that the Chinese people will surely realize the dream of national renewal and make greater contributions to the Symphony of the Community of Shared Future for Mankind.
To conclude, I would like to propose a toast,
To the prosperity and happiness of all the countries and peoples,
To the 68th birthday of the People's Republic of China,
To the cooperation and friendship between China and Iceland,
To the health of everyone present!
Ganbei! Cheers! Skál!
Thank you.