|
Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said Saturday that the
common interests of China and the United States are on the increase
rather than on the decrease.
Li made the remarks at a press conference on the sideline of the
annual session of China's top legislature.
Li, who served as Chinese Ambassador to the United States in
Washington from 1998-2001, said no matter where he is, he is always
a firm supporter of the friendly relations between China and the
United States.
The development of healthy, stable and cooperative relations
between China and the United States conforms to the common
interests of the two countries and benefits global peace and
development, he said.
"As time passes, the common interests between China and the
United States - the biggest developing country and the biggest
developed country - are actually on the increase rather than on the
decrease," he said.
He said China and the United States have expanded their
cooperation in both width and depth.
After the September 11 incident in the United States, China and
the United States have stepped up their cooperation against
terrorism and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, Li said.
The economic and trade exchanges have also grown markedly, he
noted. the United States is one of China's biggest trading partners
and more than 40,000 US firms are operating in China.
The exchanges in the cultural sector are also increasing. There
are 60,000 Chinese students studying in the United States and about
4,000 US students are studying in China, Li said, adding that the
Chinese language has become the third largest language in the
United States.
"It is unimaginable that there are no difference between the two
big countries," the foreign minister said. "If all countries in the
world look completely the same, how boring it would be."
Li said the biggest difference between China and the United
States lies in the Taiwan issue. "But there is an agreement between
China and the United States, that is, the United States recognizes
that there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is an
inseparable part of China."
"As long as the two sides abide by the principles embodied in
the three Sino-US Joint Communiques, the China-US relations would
go forward healthily," he said.
Li said China attaches much importance and gives a high
appraisal to the remarks made by US President Gorge W. Bush on
Dec.9 last year, which were also expressed clearly by President
Bush during his two meetings with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
(Xinhua News Agency March 6, 2004)
|
