H. E. Mr. R. L. Bhatia, Governor of Kerala,

H. E. Dr. Bhishma Narain Singh, Former Governor and Chairman of Unity International Foundation,

Mr. R. N. Anil, Secretary General of Unity International Foundation,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening! Thank you all for coming to this gathering. At the outset, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Dr. Bhishma Narain Singh, Mr. R. N. Anil and their colleagues, for hosting this big party for me and my wife. They have done a lot to make it happen ever since we stepped on the soil of this beautiful country three months back.

I am sure it is proper to say that to India, I am a newcomer; but to China, Unity International Foundation has already been a time-honored friend. Over decades, it has made valuable contributions to the development of friendly cooperative relations between China and India.

The Foundation has long maintained close contact with the Chinese Embassy, receiving many Chinese delegations and co-organising successfully several well-received photo exhibitions with the Embassy. It also from time to time published journals to introduce China to Indian friends. All these helped promote the bilateral relations and deepen the mutual understanding between the two countries and two peoples. It is fair to say that the Foundation is playing a unique and indispensable role in bringing China and India together in the non-governmental sector and at the grass root level. It deserves our salute. I wish to use this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to the Foundation and its members. I sincerely hope that such cooperation will continue to grow in the future.

Ladies and Gentlemen

As two major developing countries linked by mountains and rivers, China and India are facing similar tasks of accelerating their respective economies, improving people's livelihood, and meeting the challenges posed by the trends of economic globalization. Their emergence as two fastest growing economies against the current international backdrop presents a great opportunity for the development of the world economy.

We are happy to see that the development of our bilateral relations has entered into a fast track in an all-round manner in recent years. It is characterized by frequent high-level exchanges, growing mutual political trust, fast-expanding economic and trade cooperation, increasing exchanges in other fields such as culture, science and technology, education, defence ,and close coordination and cooperation on major international and regional issues.

Today I would like to brief you on the visit to China by H. E. Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh last January. I participated in all meetings and events and was deeply touched by the sincerity and commitment of two countries' leaders to further promote our relations.

During his visit to China, Prime Minister Singh was warmly received with exceptional protocol arrangements. He met with President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and Mr. Wu Bangguo, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the top legislator of China. He attended the China-India Economic, Trade and Investment Summit and delivered a speech in China Academy for Social Studies, which was relayed live by TV throughout China. In addition to that, Premier Wen hosted a private dinner for Prime Minister Singh. On the occasion they had very intimate and in-depth talks. Vice Premier Hui Liangyu attended China-India Economic, Trade and Investment Summit and delivered a speech.

The visit culminated in signing of A Shared Vision for the 21st Century of China and India by two prime ministers, which is another significant document for the development of our friendly cooperative relations in the 21st century.

In the document, both sides pledged to promote the building of a harmonious world of durable peace and common prosperity through developing China-India Strategic and Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Prosperity.

The Shared Vision also outlined the future developments of bilateral relations. In the political field, the two sides will maintain the momentum for high-level exchanges to deepen political mutual trust. Foreign ministers of two countries will exchange visits this year. Both sides also agreed to hold the fourth round of strategic dialogue. In the economic field, the two sides upgraded the target for trade volume from US$40 billion to US$60 billion by 2010 and will work to expand mutual investment and initiate negotiations on RTA in a suitable time. The two countries also reached agreements on enhancing cooperation in the fields of energy, science and technology, environmental protection, expanding personnel exchanges, establishing China-India Exchange Foundation, further organizing 100-youths delegations to visit each other's country, and starting the preparation on "Indian Festival" and "Chinese Festival" in 2010. The two sides will also promote military exchange and defence dialogue, hold the second joint anti-terrorism training and strengthen cooperation in international and regional issues in combating traditional and non-traditional security threats.

In addition, the two sides signed 10 agreements, covering bilateral cooperation in political, economic, agricultural, cultural and other fields.

In a word, the visit is another milestone for the China-India relationship. It has injected new impetus to the development of our bilateral relations and provided a historical opportunity for our two countries to work together for the betterment of our people and the world as a whole.

Ladies and Gentlemen

Peace and development are the themes of today's world. The economic globalization calls us to strengthen cooperation and coordination. As a developing country, China pursues an independent foreign policy of peace, adheres to peaceful development and an opening-up policy of mutual benefit and win-win result.

China has always attached great importance to the development of China-India relations. We hold that the two countries have more consensus than differences. The relationship between China and India has gone well beyond the bilateral context and acquired global and strategic dimension in importance. As Chinese President Hu Jintao noted, "long-term friendship, cooperation with mutual benefits and common development between China and India will change Asia and the world in a profound way". It is the set policy of the Chinese government to advance China-India Strategic and Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Prosperity. The Chinese side is ready to work with the Indian side to create favorable political conditions, properly handle the existing differences increase mutual trust and seek new ways to expand economic and trade cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual benefits. China and India are partners of development instead of rivals. There is enough space for the two countries to grow and prosper together. I firmly believe that the rising of China and India economically not only benefit the people of our two countries, but also will contribute to the peace, stability and prosperity of Asia and the whole world.

Maybe, there are people who are not quite happy about the current development of our bilateral relations. However, the growth of friendship and cooperation between our two peoples and the two countries is the trend of time. The advancement of China-India friendly cooperative relations is irreversible and totally in line with the interests of our two countries.

Ladies and Gentlemen

This year marks the 30th anniversary of China's adoption of reform and opening-up policy. During the past 30 years, China has witnessed remarkable achievements in its economic development. China's GDP has increased by 15 times from US$216.5 billion at the outset of the reform and opening-up to US$3.4 trillion in 2007, with the GDP per capita reaching US$2500. China's import and export volume has gone up from US$20.6 billion to US$2.17 trillion in 2007. China's accumulative foreign exchange reserve has totaled up to US$1.53 trillion. China's booming economy is not only improving the livelihood of the Chinese people, but also injecting new vitality into the global economy. The growing domestic demand in China has made it the third biggest import market in the world, creating plenty of opportunities in manufacturing and employment for its trade partners. China's economic development is characterized by peace and harmony through opening-up with an aim to achieve win-win result. It provides all countries an opportunity of mutually beneficial cooperation. In his report to the National People's Congress of China which is currently going on in Beijing, Premier Wen Jiabao reaffirmed that China will firmly adhere to the policy of reform and opening up.

2008 is also the Olympic Year for China. Beijing will host the Games. The theme of the Games is "one world, one dream", which spells out the hope of the government and the people of China that the Games would not only uphold the spirit of Olympic Games, but also make its due contributions to the promotion of understanding and friendship among the nations and peoples. I am happy to inform you that all facilities and preparation have been in place. Beijing is ready to embrace athletes and guests from all parts of the world. India will make its contribution by hosting the Olympic Torch Relay in New Delhi. With the support and participation of the people all over the world, we believe the Beijing Olympic Games will turn out to be a most successful and unforgettable Games in the history.

Finally, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my views with you. As Chinese Ambassador to India, I can assure you that I am committed to further promoting the important relationship between the two countries. I wish to enjoy your continuous support in my endeavor. I believe, as long as we work together, the blossom of China-India friendship will deliver more sweet fruits.

Thank you!