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Skriven 2006-04-20 23:33:10 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0604202) for Thu, 2006 Apr 20
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President Bush and People's Republic of China President Hu Exchange
Luncheon Toasts
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 20, 2006

President Bush and People's Republic of China President Hu Exchange
Luncheon Toasts
The East Room

President's Remarks view

˙˙˙˙˙ In Focus: Global Diplomacy

1:20 P.M. EDT

PRESIDENT BUSH: Mr. President, Madam Liu, Laura and I are honored to
welcome you and your delegation to the White House. It's a pleasure to have
you here, along with our other distinguished guests.

China is home to an ancient civilization, and it is helping to shape the
modern world. In a single generation, China's economy has moved from
isolation and stagnation to engagement and expansion. As China has grown,
our two peoples have come to known one another better.

Thirty-five years ago this month, the Chinese government welcomed the
United States ping pong team to Beijing. (Laughter.) It's an event that
marked the beginning of renewal -- renewed cultural exchanges between our
two nations. Today Chinese athletes compete professionally in the United
States, and Americans appreciate the opportunity to see them play.

In 2008, China will welcome athletes from all over the world as your great
nation hosts the summer Olympics. Beijing will showcase China's
transformation and demonstrate China's commitment to the international
institutions that make fair and peaceful competition possible for all
nations.

Mr. President, I thank you for the constructive and candid conversations we
had this morning. I appreciate the opportunity to expand the dialogue
between our two great nations. And Mr. President, I'm pleased to offer a
toast to you and to your gracious wife, and to the people of China.

(A toast is offered.)

PRESIDENT HU: (As translated.) Mr. President, and Mrs. Bush, distinguished
guests, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends: First of all, I wish to express
on behalf of my wife and my colleagues and in my own way, my sincere thanks
to you, Mr. President, and Mrs. Bush for your thoughtful arrangements and
gracious hospitality. I also wish to thank the President and Mrs. Bush for
giving me this important opportunity to renew my friendship with old
friends and make new ones at this grand welcoming luncheon.

Over the years, all of you present here have worked to promote the
friendship between our two peoples and promote China-U.S. relations. On
behalf of the Chinese government and the people, I wish to hereby extend
our warm greetings and best wishes to you and through you to all the
Americans who care about and support the growth of China-U.S. relations.

On this visit, I have keenly felt the warm friendship of the American
people towards the Chinese people. In the past, the Chinese and the
Americans sympathized with, helped and supported each other. We will never
forget the invaluable support given to us by the American government and
people in our struggle against fascist aggression. We will always cherish
our profound friendship with the American people forged over the long
years.

In the past 27 years, since the establishment of our diplomatic ties,
China-U.S. relations have, as a whole, moved ahead, despite difficulties
and problems. Recent years, in particular, have seen major progress in
building a constructive and cooperative China-U.S. relations. We have
carried out fruitful cooperation in wide-ranging areas, including trade,
counterterrorism, nonproliferation, and on major international and regional
issues. This has expanded the common strategic interests of our two
countries, and promoted world peace and development.

As history has shown, to ensure the continued growth of China-U.S.
relations represents the shared desire of our two peoples and meets the
fundamental interests of our two countries and peoples.

As we look across the world, we find ourselves in an era of both
opportunities and challenges. China and the United States, respectively
being the largest developing country and the largest developed country,
share growing common interests, expanding areas for cooperation and
increasing historical responsibilities. China-U.S. relations have gone far
beyond the bilateral context and have become increasingly global in nature.
China and the United States are not only stakeholders, but they should also
be constructive partners -- be parties of constructive cooperation.

Just now, President Bush and I have concluded an in-depth exchange of views
and reached a broad and important agreement on China-U.S. relations, and
regional and international issues of mutual interest. We agreed to maintain
regular high-level exchanges and increase interactions at various levels.
We agreed to deepen economic and trade cooperation, enhance dialogue on
macroeconomic policies, and strengthen communication and coordination of
major regional and international issues.

We also agreed to promote people-to-people exchanges, especially those
among young people, and promote exchange and cooperation in cultural,
educational, and other fields. In short, we are committed to increasing
mutual trust, deepening cooperation, and advancing in an all-around way,
the constructive and cooperative China-U.S. relationship in the 21st
century.

As you all know, China has, since the late 1970s, gone through major
transformations in the process of reform and opening up. In the years to
come, China will continue to make economic development a top priority,
press ahead with the reform and the opening up program, promote its
modernization drive, and endeavor to make life better for its 1.3 billion
people.

China will keep firmly to the path of peaceful development and work
unswervingly to safeguard world peace and promote common development. What
has happened has proven, and it will continue to prove, that China's
development has brought about prosperity and stability to the Chinese
people, and peace and progress to people elsewhere in the world.

China will, as always, live in peace with other countries and work with
them to promote mutually beneficial cooperation and common development,
contributing even more to the lofty cause of peace and development and of
mankind.

China-U.S. relations now stand at a new historical juncture. Let me quote
here the lines of a poem written by Du Fu, a great Chinese poet, in the
Tang Dynasty, entitled, "A View From The Top of Mount Tai," which reads
something like this: "Climb up to the summit and see the mountains around
and below are we."

We should view and handle our relations from a strategic and long-term
perspective, keep to the common strategic interests of the two countries,
enhance dialogue, mutual trust and cooperation, accommodate each others'
interests, and properly address differences. By doing so, I'm confident
that we can ensure the sound and steady growth of China-U.S. relations and
bring more benefits to both our two peoples and to people of other
countries.

Now, please join me in a toast to the health of the President and Mrs.
Bush, to the health of all friends present here today, to the friendship
between the Chinese and the American peoples, and to the bright future for
China-U.S. relations.

(A toast is offered.) (Applause.)

END 1:36 P.M. EDT

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