Message from Pan Guangxue, Ambassador to Cambodia from the People’s Republic of China

Chinese Ambassador Pan Guangxue chooses the winners in the lucky draw at the mid-Autumn festival celebration of The China Hong Kong & Macau Expatriate & Business Association of Cambodia at Diamond Island on September 11.

October 1, 2011, is the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.  Sixty-two years is a short period in the 5,000 years of civilisation of China.  However, in the past 62 years China has undergone profound changes and made remarkable achievements thanks to its pursuit of peaceful development.

China’s overall strength has grown considerably. An historic transformation from a highly centralised planned economy to a dynamic socialist market economy has been achieved in China.  The Chinese people, once inadequately fed and clad, are leading decent lives on the whole, an historic breakthrough.  A social security system covering both urban and rural residents is taking shape, and culture, education, science and technology, health care, sports and other social programs are flourishing.

With the steady deepening of its opening-up, China has maintained business and trade ties with 163 countries and regions to date.  It has signed 10 free-trade-zone agreements, bilateral investment treaties with 129 countries and double taxation avoidance agreements with 96 countries.  It has reduced its total tariff rate from 15.3 per cent before its entry into the WTO to the present 9.8 per cent, and abolished most non-tariff measures. All this shows that China is actively promoting liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment.  

China has made important contributions to the stable development of the world economy.  Since its entry into the WTO in 2001, China has imported goods worth nearly US$750 billion every year and created over 14 million jobs for those exporting countries and regions. Over the past decade, foreign-funded companies in China have remitted a total of US$261.7 billion of profits, with an annual increase of 30 per cent. From 2000 to 2010, China’s annual non-financial direct overseas investment grew from less than US$1 billion to US$59 billion, thus boosting the economic development in the recipient countries. China has contributed over 10 per cent to world economic growth every year in recent years.  

Since the international financial crisis erupted in 2008, China has taken an active part in the building of a global economic governance mechanism, got involved in multi-country macroeconomic policy coordination and participated in international trade financing schemes and financial cooperation.  It has sent large overseas purchasing missions and helped countries in difficulties. China conscientiously meets the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations, and is the only country in the world that has halved the number of people living in poverty ahead of schedule. In addition, China provides assistance to other countries and regions as its capacity permits. By the end of 2009, China had given assistance worth RMB 256.3 billion to 161 countries and over 30 international and regional organisations reduced and canceled 380 debts incurred by 50 heavily indebted poor countries and least-developed countries, trained 120,000 people for other developing countries, and sent 21,000 medical personnel and nearly 10,000 teachers abroad to help other countries. China encourages the least-developed countries to expand exports to China and has pledged zero tariff treatment to over 95 per cent of the exports to China by all the least-developed countries which have diplomatic relations with China.

China plays an important role in safeguarding world peace and meeting global challenges. China is the only nuclear-weapon country that has publicly stated that it will not be the first to use nuclear weapons, or use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states or nuclear-weapon-free zones. China has dispatched about 21,000 personnel on 30 UN peacekeeping missions, which is the highest number among the permanent members of the UN Security Council. China takes an active part in international cooperation in anti-terrorism and nonproliferation. It provides humanitarian aid and dispatches rescue teams to countries hit by severe natural disasters. China is a member of over 100 intergovernmental international organisations, a party to over 300 international conventions and an active participant in building the international system.  China has settled historical boundary issues with 12 land neighbours.  It calls for settling disputes over territory and maritime rights and interests with neighbouring countries through dialogue and negotiation. For instance, China has made a constructive proposal to “shelve disputes and seek joint development” and done its utmost to uphold peace and stability in the South China Sea, East China Sea and the surrounding areas. China seeks to promote common development and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region by pursuing bilateral cooperation and participating in regional and sub-regional cooperation.

We take pride in the achievements made jointly by all the Chinese people with their painstaking efforts in the pursuit of peaceful development. Meanwhile, we are soberly aware that China has a large population yet a weak economic base. It has to feed close to 20 per cent of the world’s population with 7.9 per cent of the world’s farmland and 6.5 per cent of the world’s fresh water. What has been achieved in its social and economic development must meet the need of 1.3 billion people, which presents a great challenge to China. China’s per capita GDP in 2010 was about US$4,400, ranking around the 100th place in the world. Unbalanced development still exists between the urban and rural areas and among different regions; the structural problems in economic and social development remain acute; and economic growth, which excessively depends on resource input, is increasingly constrained by resource shortages and environmental problems. All this has made the shifting of the growth model a daunting task. China’s capacity for independent innovation is weak, and it is at the low end of the value chain in both international division of labour and trade. The standard of living of the Chinese is not high, and China’s social security system is inadequate, lagging far behind those of the developed countries.

China is the only nuclear-weapon country that has publicly stated that it will not be the first to use nuclear weapons

China’s modernisation involves one fifth of the world’s population and will be a long-term process. The scale and magnitude of the difficulties and problems involved are unprecedented in the present world and rare in human history. China will remain a developing country for a long time to come, which means that China must dedicate itself to advancing its modernisation drive, promoting development and improving its people's livelihood.

To build a society of higher-level initial prosperity in an all-round way which benefits over one billion Chinese people is the medium-and long-term goal and to implement the Twelfth Five-Year Plan of development is the near and medium-term goal of China's pursuit of peaceful development. From ensuring people's basic living needs to building a society of initial prosperity and then to reaching the level of the medium-developed countries - this is what China's strategy for peaceful development is all about.

To reach these goals, China will make the following efforts:

Accelerating the shifting of the model of growth;

Making adjustment in the economic sectors will receive top priority. The all-round, coordinated and sustainable growth of China's economy will create great space for the growth of the world economy.

Further exploiting China's domestic resources and its market strengths.

China's consumption structure will be further upgraded, and the potential of individual consumption will be further released. All this will create more business opportunities to other countries.

Accelerating the building of a harmonious society;

China will accelerate the building of a harmonious society with emphasis on improving people's lives and the reform of social systems, and fully respect and uphold basic human rights and other lawful rights and interests of citizens, so that all the people enjoy the full benefit of the peaceful development.

Implementing the opening-up strategy of mutual benefit;

China will continue to pursue the basic state policy of opening up to the outside world, speed up the way of conducting foreign trade, make better use of foreign investment, attach greater importance to overseas investment and international cooperation, continue to open China's financial market and financial sectors in an orderly way, and promote the sound development of economic globalisation.

Creating a peaceful international environment and favourable external conditions;

China will continue to promote friendly relations with other countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. We will explore ways to establish and develop a new type of relationship among the major countries, enhance friendship and cooperation with both the neighbouring countries and other Asian countries as well as unity with other developing countries, actively engage in handling multilateral issues and addressing global issues, continue to carry out exchanges and cooperation with the parliaments, parties, local authorities and NGOs of other countries, expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges to enhance understanding and friendship between the Chinese people and the people of other countries.

China is committed to pursuing a defence policy which is defensive in nature. China faces multiple traditional and non-traditional security challenges and the threat of separatists and terrorism. The fundamental purpose of modernising the Chinese armed forces is to safeguard China's sovereignty, security, territorial integrity and interests of national development. China will not engage in an arms race with any other country, and it does not pose a military threat to any other country. It is committed to solving international disputes and hotspot issues with peaceful means, promotes international and regional security cooperation and opposes terrorism in all forms.

Peaceful development is a strategic choice made by China to realise modernisation, make itself strong and prosperous and make more contribution to the progress of human civilisation.

In the Chinese culture the world has been believed to be a harmonious whole ever since the ancient times. The Chinese people have always cherished a world view of “unity without uniformity”, “harmony between man and nature”, and “harmony is invaluable”. Under the influence of the culture of harmony, peace-loving has been deeply ingrained in the Chinese character.  Imbued with the belief that one should be as inclusive as the vast ocean which admits hundreds of rivers, the Chinese nation has embraced all that is fine in foreign cultures. We respect different cultures and views, treat others in the same way as we expect to be treated, and do not impose our will upon others. We treat all foreign countries with courtesy, foster harmonious ties with neighbors and make friends with distant states.

China adopts the following thinking on international relations and foreign policies that conform to peaceful development -- promoting the building of a harmonious world and new thinking on security featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination, pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace, actively living up to international responsibility and promoting regional cooperation and good-neighborly relations.  China does not seek regional hegemony or sphere of influence, nor does it want to exclude any country from participating in regional cooperation. China's prosperity, development and long-term stability represent an opportunity rather than a threat to its neighbors. China will uphold the Asian spirit of standing on its own feet, being bold in opening new ground, being open and inclusive and sharing weal and woe. It will remain a good neighbor, friend and partner of other Asian countries.

China's peaceful development has broken away from the traditional pattern where a rising power was bound to seek hegemony. As national conditions vary from country to country, there is no such thing as a fixed mode of development which claims to be the only effective one and applicable to all. A path of development is viable only when it suits the national conditions of a country. China is fully aware that taking the path of peaceful development is an important and long-term process and that the current domestic and foreign environments are going through profound and complex changes. It will thus better summarize and apply its own successful experience, draw on the practices of other countries, and stay alert about new problems and challenges that may arise, so as to open up brighter prospects for peaceful development.

China cannot develop itself in isolation from the rest of the world, and global prosperity and stability cannot be maintained without China. China's achievements are inseparable from its friendly cooperation with the outside world.  The good-neighborly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Cambodia has set a good example of the countries with different social systems.  

China and Cambodia enjoy a long history of friendship.  The contacts and communications between the two peoples can be traced back to 2000 years ago.  A Chinese traveler Zhou Daguan came to Cambodia in the Yuan Dynasty and recorded the thriving prosperity of Angkor Kingdom in his book Zhen La Feng Tu Ji (Notes on the Costumes of Tchen La) . The Ming Dynasty navigator Zheng He stopped over in Tchen La several times during his voyages to the Western Seas and a special temple was built in his commemoration by the local people.  

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the profound friendship established between Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and His Majesty King Father Preah NORODOM SIHANOUK became a much-told story by the peoples far and wide.  In recent years, such friendly relations have been further promoted by frequent mutual visits of leaders from both countries.

Thanks to the care and support of successive leaders and the concerted efforts of the governments and peoples of the two countries, the cooperation between China and Cambodia has yielded fruitful results in many fields, bringing real benefits to the peoples of both countries.  The two sides have established political mutual trust, maintained closer high-level contacts and collaborated closely on issues involving each other’s core interests.  The economic and trade cooperation has produced substantial results.  The trade volume reached US$1.58 billion in the first half of 2011, up by 68.7% year on year. 

The direct investment of the Chinese companies has been increased a great deal in Cambodia, which has become one of the favorite places for Chinese enterprises to make direct investment overseas. 

By the end of June, 2011, China’s cumulative non-financial direct investment in Cambodia reached US$1.181 billion and the accumulative contract value of projects amounted $4.949 billion, with a turnover of $2.566 billion.  The people-to-people and cultural exchanges and cooperation have been thriving with increasing exchange of visits in the fields of culture, education, sports, social science, youth, etc. 

According to statistics, the number of Cambodian students studying in China with the aid of Chinese government scholarship has reached 160 this year.  In the past two years when China hosted the Olympic Games and World Expo, His Majesty Norodom Shamoni and H.E. Prime Minister Hun Sen went to Beijing and Shanghai respectively to attend the opening ceremonies.  H.E. President of the Senate Chea Sim and H.E. President of the National Assembly Heng Samrin also paid visits to China and took recuperation there.  All this demonstrates the profound feelings of friendship for the Chinese people and the great importance given to the bilateral ties by the Cambodian royal family, its government and its people.  

Peace and development are the two major issues of today’s world. The pursuit of peace, development and cooperation is the shared aspirations of all peoples.  China wishes to share with Cambodia the opportunities of peace and development and join hands in coping with the challenges.  On the bases of the solid foundation of past achievements and friendly ties between the two countries, we’ll further strengthen traditional friendship to increase political mutual trust, complement each other’s economic advantages to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges to promote mutual understanding, and enhance close coordination and cooperation on multilateral issues to safeguard common interests with the aim of facilitating sound and steady development of the comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation between the two countries.  China and Cambodia will always be good neighbors, close friends, trusted partners and dear brothers.  

I’m in firm belief that with the care and support from the leaders of both countries and the joint endeavors of the two peoples, the traditional friendship between China and Cambodia will be passed on from generation to generation, and the bilateral ties will gain an even promising future.

to peaceful development - promoting the building of a harmonious world and new thinking on security featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination, pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace, actively living up to international responsibility and promoting regional cooperation and good-neighborly relations. China does not seek regional hegemony or sphere of influence, nor does it want to exclude any country from participating in regional cooperation. China's prosperity, development and long-term stability represent an opportunity rather than a threat to its neighbours. China will uphold the Asian spirit of standing on its own feet, being bold in opening new ground, being open and inclusive and sharing weal and woe. It will remain a good neighbour, friend and partner of other Asian countries.

China's peaceful development has broken away from the traditional pattern where a rising power was bound to seek hegemony. As national conditions vary from country to country, there is no such thing as a fixed mode of development which claims to be the only effective one and applicable to all. A path of development is viable only when it suits the national conditions of a country. China is fully aware that taking the path of peaceful development is an important and long-term process and that the current domestic and foreign environments are going through profound and complex changes. It will thus better summarise and apply its own successful experience, draw on the practices of other countries and stay alert about new problems and challenges that may arise, so as to open up brighter prospects for peaceful development.

China cannot develop itself in isolation from the rest of the world, and global prosperity and stability cannot be maintained without China. China’s achievements are inseparable from its friendly cooperation with the outside world. The good-neighbourly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Cambodia has set a good example of the countries with different social systems.  

China and Cambodia enjoy a long history of friendship. The contacts and communications between the two peoples can be traced back to 2000 years ago. Chinese traveler Zhou Daguan came to Cambodia in the Yuan Dynasty and recorded the thriving prosperity of Angkor Kingdom in his book Zhen La Feng Tu Ji (Notes on the Costumes of Tchen La). The Ming Dynasty navigator Zheng He stopped over in Tchen La several times during his voyages to the Western Seas and a special temple was built in his commemoration by the local people.  

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the profound friendship established between Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and His Majesty King Father Preah Norodom Sihanouk became a much-told story by the peoples far and wide. In recent years, such friendly relations have been further promoted by frequent mutual visits of leaders from both countries.

Thanks to the care and support of successive leaders and the concerted efforts of the governments and peoples of the two countries, the cooperation between China and Cambodia has yielded fruitful results in many fields, bringing real benefits to the peoples of both countries. The two sides have established political mutual trust, maintained closer high-level contacts and collaborated closely on issues involving each other’s core interests. The economic and trade cooperation has produced substantial results. The trade volume reached US$1.58 billion in the first half of 2011, up by 68.7 per cent year on year.  The direct investment of the Chinese companies has been increased a great deal in Cambodia, which has become one of the favourite places for Chinese enterprises to make direct investment overseas.  By the end of June, 2011, China’s cumulative non-financial direct investment in Cambodia reached US$1.181 billion and the accumulative contract value of projects amounted to $4.949 billion, with a turnover of $2.566 billion. The people-to-people and cultural exchanges and cooperation have been thriving with increasing exchange of visits in the fields of culture, education, sports, social science, youth, etc. According to statistics, the number of Cambodian students studying in China with the aid of Chinese government scholarships has reached 160 this year.

In the past two years when China hosted the Olympic Games and World Expo, His Majesty Norodom Shamoni and HE Prime Minister Hun Sen went to Beijing and Shanghai respectively to attend the opening ceremonies.  HE President of the Senate Chea Sim and HE President of the National Assembly Heng Samrin also paid visits to China and took recuperation there.  All this demonstrates the profound feelings of friendship for the Chinese people and the great importance given to the bilateral ties by the Cambodian royal family, its government and its people.  

Peace and development are the two major issues of today’s world. The pursuit of peace, development and cooperation is the shared aspirations of all peoples. China wishes to share with Cambodia the opportunities of peace and development and join hands in coping with the challenges.  On the basis of the solid foundation of past achievements and friendly ties between the two countries, we’ll further strengthen traditional friendship to increase political mutual trust, complement each other’s economic advantages to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges to promote mutual understanding, and enhance close coordination and cooperation on multilateral issues to safeguard common interests with the aim of facilitating sound and steady development of the comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation between the two countries.  

China and Cambodia will always be good neighbours, close friends, trusted partners and dear brothers.  

I’m in firm belief that with the care and support from the leaders of both countries and the joint endeavors of the two peoples, the traditional friendship between China and Cambodia will be passed on from generation to generation, and the bilateral ties will gain an even promising future.