The Communist Party of China (CPC) has made remarkable progress in widening contacts with political parties in foreign countries over the last 13 years, says Dai Bingguo, head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee.
Since the Fourth Plenary Session of the 13th CPC Central Committee was held in 1989, the CPC has adjusted its policies and principles concerning developing ties with foreign parties in line with unprecedented changes in the international arena, Dai told Xinhua in an exclusive interview.
Thanks to the CPC Central Committee leadership with Jiang Zemin at the center, the CPC had made marked achievements in promoting all-round and multi-channel ties with foreign parties under the guidance of Deng Xiaoping Theory, he said.
At the 15th CPC National Congress five years ago, CPC Central Committee General Secretary Jiang Zemin declared that on the basis of independence, equality, mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs, the CPC was willing to develop new-style cooperative ties with any foreign political party willing to make contacts with the CPC, he said.
Guided by such basic principles, the CPC's inter-party contacts had contributed much to China's overall diplomacy as well as the modern socialist construction and consolidation of the CPC's ruling party position, he said.
Referring to high-level inter-party exchanges, he said that in recent years more than 40 CPC delegations led by Jiang Zemin or other CPC leaders had visited dozens of countries including the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and Vietnam.
When foreign party delegations came to China, CPC leaders discussed issues of common concern with them, he said, noting the CPC equally valued contacts with both ruling parties and those not in office.
Through inter-party exchanges, the CPC had improved ties with countries that had no diplomatic relations with China, he said. During the past five years, almost 50 delegations from such countries had been invited to China.
The CPC's inter-party diplomacy has also boosted international economic and trade cooperation. Some CPC delegations included business groups and studied economic projects abroad when visiting other countries, he said.
Through inter-party exchanges, the CPC provided economic information for relevant departments in a bid to promote cooperative programs, and welcomed foreign delegations to help develop China's vast western areas, he said.
Through inter-party ties, the CPC improved its understanding of the current international situation by grasping opportunities to learn from foreign parties' successes and failures, he said. A range of foreign parties had got to know a peace-loving and friendly image of the CPC through such channels.
According to Dai, over the past five years, the CPC received 800-plus delegations from foreign political parties, and sent about 400 delegations abroad. By the end of 2001, the CPC had established ties with 418 parties and organizations in 147 countries and regions, he said.
(Xinhua News Agency October 11, 2002)
