Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

It is a great pleasure for me to have this opportunity to talk face-to-face to you. First, on behalf of the National People’s Congress and the Chinese Association for International Understanding and myself, I would like to extend sincerest greetings and best wishes to all friends here today.

 

“A bosom friend afar brings a distant land near.” Although China and Albania are thousands of miles away from each other, friendly ties between our two countries have a long

history, and deep traditional friendship bind our peoples closely together. Ever since setting foot on this beautiful land, I have seen and felt the friendliness and hospitality of the Albanian people. Albania is a hardworking, brave, and friendly nation.

 

The friendship between our peoples is deep-rooted, and China-Albania relations are growing strong. In recent years, high-level mutual visits have been frequent, political mutual trust has been strengthened, cooperation in finance, trade, investment, and people-to-people and cultural exchanges have been enjoying a sound momentum, and progress has been made in cooperation between our two countries under the framework of “16+1.” Not only can the friendly cooperation between China and Albania benefit our two countries and the two peoples, it can also contribute to peace and development of the region and the whole world.

 

At present, both China and Albania are in a crucial stage of development, and face important tasks of developing economy and improving people’s life. Therefore, our two countries need to further step up cooperation, learn from each other, and leverage our complementary advantages to cooperate for mutual benefits. China’s proposal of the “Belt and Road” Initiative has been widely appreciated, and responded to, by countries and regions along the “Belt and Road” in Asia, Europe and Africa. In Albania, there has also been society-wide attention and positive opinions on the Initiative and Albanian leaders have expressed for several times the willingness to participate in the Initiative. Here, I also wish to share my views with you on the “Belt and Road” Initiative.

 

Two millennia ago, the industrious and courageous people of the Eurasian continent opened up several land and maritime routes of trade and cultural exchanges between the civilizations of Asia, Europe and Africa. The routes leading to China are later on collectively known as the Silk Road. Over centuries and millennia, the Silk Road spirit – “peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit” – has been passed down from generation to generation, promoting progress of civilization as well as economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation between the East and the West.

 

In September and October of 2013, during his visits to Central Asia and Southeast Asia, President Xi Jinping of China respectively proposed the important initiatives of jointly building the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and the “21st-Century Maritime Silk Road,” which gained extensive international attention and positive responses from relevant countries. The “Belt and Road” Initiative focuses on five cooperation areas – policy coordination, facilities connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and people-to-people bond. Following the principles of joint building, wide consultation and shared benefits, the “Belt and Road” is an open and inclusive initiative that welcomes the participation of all countries as well as international and regional organizations. The Initiative is about building a path of win-win cooperation that leads to common development and prosperity, and a path of peace and friendship that leads to more mutual understanding, mutual trust and across-the-board exchanges and cooperation. China will carry forward the Silk Road spirit and work together with relevant countries to build a community of shared interests, responsibilities, and destiny with political mutual trust, economic integration and cultural inclusiveness.

 

The “Belt and Road” Initiative aims at helping peoples along the route to meet, understand, trust, and respect each other, so that they can work together for progress and development, and share harmonious, peaceful and happy life. It is a suggestion of mutually beneficial cooperation that can only be successful with the participation of the peoples of relevant countries. Public support is the social foundation of the “Belt and Road” Initiative. We should work to strengthen the people-to-people bond among our peoples in the Silk Road spirit of friendly cooperation, so as to enable all peoples to enjoy peace and the fruits of development.

 

The world belongs to the people of different countries, and is colorful because of its diversity. Countries have distinctly different cultures, histories, and political systems. Such differences are what make the human society vibrant and exciting. People-to-people bond is about forging consensus and seeking common ground in diversity. We do not draw the line between black and white according to the differences in political and economic systems, cultures or ideologies. Rather, we fully respect the choice of different peoples for their own political systems and economic development paths as well as their cultures, traditions, and spiritual pursuits, so that all can benefit from cooperation in peace and development. We also hope that all countries and nations on the earth respect each other in a harmonious and inclusive manner, and develop and progress together. We are making friends with an open mind and sincerity, in order to promote friendly and peaceful development and share the fruits of reforms and development. It is in this spirit that we announced the new development ideas of innovative, coordinated, green, open, and shared development.

 

Communication and exchanges are important preconditions of strengthening people-to-people bond and building the “Belt and Road.” Two thousand years ago, the ancient Silk Road served as a bridge of communication and exchanges between the peoples of Asia and Europe, through which civilizations learnt from each other and advanced hand-in-hand, leaving behind myriads of cultural legacies. In this process, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity spread to China and greatly influenced the course of development of the Chinese culture. On the other hand, China’s silk, tea, and porcelain were also traded to the West and substantially changed the life style of the European people. Today, two millennia later, we need to follow the footsteps of our ancestors and expand people-to-people contacts, which will not only lay a solid foundation for cooperation in other areas, but also help uncover cultural treasures along the Silk Road, and promote mutual learning among civilization through exchanges.

 

Understanding and cooperation are what enable stronger people-to-people bonds and the building of the “Belt and Road.” As technologies progress, mountains, rivers, deserts and wastelands are no longer barriers of exchanges among peoples, but the real barriers are biases and prejudices. After the “Belt and Road” Initiative was proposed, some people have been judging it through the lens of bias, saying that the Initiative is a guise of China’s attempt to expand outward and transfer excessive industrial capacities. Still some others say it is China’s “Marshall Plan.” These views do not even merit any rebuttal, for they are but ignorance and bias, groundless malicious slanders, and distorted interpretation in service to ulterior interests. China will not expand outward, and has never done so. On the contrary, China has been invaded and enslaved for several times in its history. The Chinese people are a peace-loving people, who hope and work for world peace. We crave peaceful life of moderate wealth, and are willing to jointly create a bright future together with peace-loving people all over the world. We firmly believe that only common development is real development and that is why common prosperity is the pursuit of the Chinese people. We uphold the principles of mutual respect and benefits, for only when nations understand each other and treat each other with frankness can our people’s hearts be connected, friendship strengthened, cooperation deepened, and mutual benefits and common prosperity achieved.

 

Strengthening people-to-people bond requires systematically concerted efforts from legislatures, NGOs, think-tanks, media, and all other parts of our societies. The Chinese Association for International Understanding initiated the “Understanding and Cooperation” Dialogue in 2012, which played a positive role in promoting people-to-people contacts, trust among peoples, and concrete cooperation. This time, I am also here in Albania for more understanding, friendship, exchanges and cooperation between our countries. Here I wish to voice my hope for more NGOs, media agencies and think-tanks to take part in the cause of promoting understanding and cooperation. We need to further step up cultural and education exchanges to increase mutual understanding and trust between the Chinese and Albanian peoples; to further strengthen cooperation on tourism, technology and healthcare to bring more tangible benefits to our peoples; and to further reinforce the people-to-people exchanges and cooperation network and let it play a bigger role in the building of the “Belt and Road.” I believe that, with the joint efforts of China and Albania, the friendship between the Chinese and Albanian peoples will grow from strength to strength.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Friends,

 

Building the “Belt and Road” is a shared undertaking of the peoples of relevant Asian, European and African countries. We welcome the participation of all countries, including Albania, in the Initiative, as both contributors and beneficiaries. The joint efforts of China and Albania in the building of the “Belt and Road” will help connect the two great economic circles and markets in East Asia and Europe, making personnel, capital and cultural flows easier; accelerate the improvements of Albania’s infrastructure, making Albania an important hub connecting Asia and Europe; give Albanian products easier access to markets in Europe and Asia, better leveraging Albania’s comparative advantages in international competition; and enable the Albanian people to enjoy more of the fruits of development, and thus better life. We should seize the historic opportunities presented by the “Belt and Road” Initiative, and further enhance our exchanges and cooperation for win-win results and common development, building a China-Albania community of common destiny. I believe that, as long as we work hand-in-glove with each other towards the same goals, the people of China and Albania will definitely achieve greater results on our paths to the realization of our dreams. Let us work together for a brighter future of China-Albania relations!