BEIJING, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama had a taste of Chinese history on Wednesday by visiting the country's most iconic site, the Great Wall. "It's magical," Obama said when walking along the Great Wall in chilly winter wind. "It reminds you of the sweep of history and our time here on earth is not that long. We better make the best of it." Dressed in a dark winter jacket, a smiling Obama broke away from companions and walked alone along the ramp. "I brought back the admiration for the Chinese civilization, I bring here the greetings of American People," Obama said when ascending a watchtower to enjoy a distant view at the Badaling section of the Great Wall. Obama is the fifth U.S. president to visit the manmade wonder. Former U.S. President Richard Nixon visited the Great Wall in 1972,Ronald Reagan in 1984 and Bill Clinton in 1998. In 2002, former U.S. President George W. Bush and his wife Laura toured the same section as Obama did. "I'm inspired by the majesty of the Great Wall and am grateful for the warmth of the Chinese people," Obama wrote on the visitor's book after his half-hour tour. The Great Wall was the second sightseeing program for Obama during his visit to China. He toured the Imperial Palace Tuesday after nearly two hours of talks with President Hu Jintao. Built originally as the biggest defense work in ancient China, the Great Wall today has become one of the must-see places for visiting foreign leaders to the country in the past six decades. The Badaling section, which is in the northwestern suburb of Beijing, runs about 3,741 meters on a mountain of about 700 to 800 meters above sea level, dotted with 19 beacon towers. The wall at the Badaling section averages seven to eight meters in height, six to seven meters in thickness, with a width of four to five meters on top. Over the past six decades, more than 450 heads of state and government have visited the Badaling section. The Great Wall is listed among the UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage sites given its historic status. Separated sections of the Great Wall were built as early as 2,000 years ago by small kingdoms to defend against raids from nomadic tribes to the north. When Emperor Qinshihuang, the country's first emperor, united China for the first time in 221 B.C., he ordered the separate sections linked together, forming a complete military defense system. The Great Wall today was mostly rebuilt during the Ming Dynasty(1368-1644). With its sections stretching from northeast to west China, the Great Wall now runs 6,700 kilometers long and its section at Badaling is the first part that opens to tourists.
SHANGHAI, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in China's economic hub Shanghai on Sunday night, starting a state visit to China. Air Force One touched down at the Shanghai Pudong International Airport in heavy rain at about 23:10. This is Obama's first state visit to China since he assumed the presidency in January. He is also the first U.S. president who paid a state visit to China within one year in office. This year marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the People's Republic of China and the United States. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Permanent Representative to the United Nations Susan Rice and National Security Advisor James Jones also arrived in Shanghai Sunday night. U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in Shanghai on Nov. 15, 2009 to begin his first state visit to ChinaPresident Obama will meet with local officials on Monday and have a dialogue with Chinese youth, during which he is supposed to answer questions from netizens via Xinhuanet, a news website of the Xinhua News Agency on Monday. He will leave Shanghai Monday afternoon for Beijing, where he will hold talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and meet with other Chinese leaders. Leaders of the two countries are expected to discuss bilateral ties and major international and regional issues of common concern, according to diplomatic sources. A girl presents a bouquet to U.S. President Barack Obama after he arrives at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on Nov. 15, 2009Presidents of the two countries have met several times since Obama took office. They agreed to forge positive, cooperative and comprehensive ties in the 21st century during their first meeting on the sidelines of the Group of 20 financial summit in London in April and pledged to further such relations in another meeting five months later in New York. Obama's visit to China will be of great significance for the development of Sino-U.S. ties in the new era, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said Saturday.
SANAA, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese military vessel arrived in the Aden port Saturday on a goodwill official visit for the coming several days, official SABA news agency reported. The Chinese military vessel, named Chan Dokouh, is affiliated with the Chinese naval fleet now cruising in the international waters, SANA said. The military ship and its crew were received by a number of senior Yemeni military and security officials at the southern military naval base in Aden, said the report. The visit of the Chinese military vessel to Aden port came as part of the joint bilateral cooperation between Yemen and China, particularly in fighting terrorism, counter-smuggling, combating piracy and ensuring safety of navigation through international waterways, added the report.
BEIJING, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government reiterated Wednesday that to spur "sustainable and fast consumer spending" will be a priority next year, as the world's third-largest economy seeks to break from dependence on export and government pump-priming to drive post-crisis growth. The government will continue to raise the earnings of the middle and low income groups to boost consumer spending, said a senior official with the nation's top economic planning body. The government will step up research on optimization the income distribution mechanism to improve residents' purchasing power, Zhang Ping, minister in charge of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), made the remarks at a national meeting charting the ministry's work in 2010. The rare official stance on improving income distribution echoed the unanimous call from experts and the general public to bridge the yawning wealth gap between the rich and poor, which underlined the government's resolution to address the simmering social conflicts and the urgency to rebalance economic growth. Zhang said the government will exert more efforts to sort out problems that have close bearing on public interests and ensure that all public members share the fruits of the development and reform, so as to safeguard social harmony and stability. In concrete, the government will raise the pensions for enterprise retirees and improve treatment for those who enjoy special care. Local education, cultural and health-care facilities will also receive greater subsidy for expansion. To revive the economic growth which lapsed to a decade low amid the global financial crisis, Chinese government unveiled a 4-trillion-yuan stimulus package, which was led by government investment, to counter falling exports, the driving force of the Chinese economy before the crisis took a toll. As a result, as the GDP growth accelerated to 8.9 percent in the third quarter, investment contributed 7.3 percentage points while consumption devoted 4 percentage points. "As the Chinese authorities have recognized that the rapid pace of recovery has exacerbated some of the economy structural imbalances, the authorities will focus on rebalancing growth, primarily by supporting consumption and private investment, with many consumer incentives to be carried out in 2010," said Jing Ulrich, managing director and chairman of China Equities and Commodities of J.P. Morgan. Also on Wednesday, the State Council, or cabinet, decided to renew the preferential policies introduced early this year to boost car and home appliance sales. "While investment growth should be managed at a reasonable pace, consumer spending should maintain sustainable and relatively fast expansion," Zhang said. As investment binge and runaway bank lending prompted fears for asset bubble, Zhang said the government will step up efforts to curb speculative property transaction, and provide more affordable housing to middle and low income families.
LIMA, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin arrived in Lima on Sunday, kicking off his official good-will visit to this South American country. Jia, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, delivered a written speech upon his arrival at the airport of the Peruvian capital. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. In the speech, Jia hailed the traditional friendship and sound development of bilateral ties, highlighting the fruitful cooperation in various fields and close coordination on international and regional affairs since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1971. The China-Peru relations entered a new phase of development when the two states established a strategic partnership in 2008, Jia said. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. China always attaches importance to the relations with Peru and will work together with Peru to promote the partnership in a bid to benefit the two peoples, he noted. Jia is paying a two-day visit to Lima, which is expected to further friendship, mutual respect and cooperation, at the invitation of the Peruvian government. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. He is scheduled to meet the Peruvian leadership and attend the opening ceremony of a China-Peru business forum on Monday. Jia visited the Philippines and made a stopover at French Polynesia last week. He will also visit Ecuador and Brazil.
BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- China and the United States would work together for positive results at the Copenhagen summit slated for December this year, Chinese President Hu Jintao said here on Tuesday. "President Obama and I agreed to expand the China-U.S. cooperation in the fields of climate change, energy and environment," Hu told the press after talks with visiting U.S. President Barack Obama. China and the United States would cooperate with all sides concerned, on the basis of the "common but differentiated responsibilities" principle and their respective capabilities, to help produce positive results at the Copenhagen summit on climate change, said Hu. China and the United States have signed documents of cooperation including a memorandum of understanding on enhancing cooperation on climate change, energy and the environment, and have officially launched an initiative on a joint research center on clean energy, he added.
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RABAT, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, who is on a five-nation African tour, held talks Monday with his Moroccan counterpart Taieb Fassi Fihri on ways to upgrade relations between the two countries. The two spoke highly of the abundant achievements that have been made in bilateral cooperation in various fields, mainly in politics, economy and trade, culture and health, since the establishment of diplomatic ties 52 years ago, an official press release gained by Xinhua said. It said the two ministers agreed to continuously promote the upgrading of China-Morocco friendly ties by enhancing political mutual trust, deepening cooperation, expand people-to-people exchanges and strengthening coordination in international and regional issues. After the talks, the two top diplomats signed a China-Morocco joint communique on Morocco's recognition of China's market economy status. Yang is on his first official foreign visit of the year that includes five African nations, namely Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Algeria and Morocco, as well as Saudi Arabia. It has been China's tradition for 20 years that its foreign minister visits Africa in the beginning of the year.
BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao said here on Tuesday that the key to Sino-U.S. relations was to mutually respect and accomodate each other's core interests and major concerns while differences from different national conditions were normal. "The China-U.S. relations are very important. Maintaining and promoting such ties is a shared responsibility of both sides," Hu told reporters here after meeting visiting U.S. President Barack Obama. China is ready to work together with the United States to push forward the continuous, healthy and stable development of Sino-U.S. relations to better serve the interests of the two peoples and the people around the world, said the Chinese leader. Hu said that the two sides have reaffirmed the "cardinal principle" of "mutually respecting national sovereignty and territorial integrity" and voiced opposition to any attempt by any force that violates this principle. He said that China appreciates President Obama's support for the one-China policy and the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques, and his respect for China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity on the Taiwan issue and other matters. "We have both agreed to conduct dialogues and exchanges on issues including human rights and religion, in the spirit of equality, mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs, so as to boost understanding, mitigate differences and broaden consensus," Hu said.
LIMA, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin arrived in Lima on Sunday, kicking off his official good-will visit to this South American country. Jia, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, delivered a written speech upon his arrival at the airport of the Peruvian capital. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. In the speech, Jia hailed the traditional friendship and sound development of bilateral ties, highlighting the fruitful cooperation in various fields and close coordination on international and regional affairs since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1971. The China-Peru relations entered a new phase of development when the two states established a strategic partnership in 2008, Jia said. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. China always attaches importance to the relations with Peru and will work together with Peru to promote the partnership in a bid to benefit the two peoples, he noted. Jia is paying a two-day visit to Lima, which is expected to further friendship, mutual respect and cooperation, at the invitation of the Peruvian government. Jia Qinglin (L), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrives in Lima to start an official goodwill visit to Peru on Nov. 22, 2009. He is scheduled to meet the Peruvian leadership and attend the opening ceremony of a China-Peru business forum on Monday. Jia visited the Philippines and made a stopover at French Polynesia last week. He will also visit Ecuador and Brazil.
TAIPEI, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou on Sunday called for both sides across the Taiwan Strait to resolve hatred through communication and negotiation and make peace an eternity. Ma made the remarks in a ceremony to unveil a memorial square, which was constructed on the site of the Kuningtou battle in Kinmen of Taiwan, according to local media reports. Troops of the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang had fierce fightings and suffered heavy losses at the site on Oct. 25,1949, the year when the People's Republic of China was founded. Battlefield should be turned into a square of peace, opposition should be replaced by reconciliation, and war by peace, Ma said. Ma called for efforts to find a way that is acceptable for both sides to settle cross-Strait issues.