Remarks by Ambassador H.E. Bai Tian at the Reception on the occasion of the 45th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between China and Malaysia

2019-05-29 18:12

Thank you All for joining us at this evening's Reception and celebration for the 45th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between China and Malaysia, and a special "thank you" to Foreign Minister Dato' Saifuddin, for being the Guest of Honor of tonight's events on behalf of Malaysian Government.

 45 years ago, on May 31st in 1974 in Beijing, Chinese Premier Chou En-lai and Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak signed the joint communique to establish diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia, thus opening up a new chapter in the history of the friendly relations between our two countries. 

 Over the past 45 years, China and Malaysia have built up profound political trust. Our friendly relations have achieved remarkable progress and the bilateral cooperation yielded fruitful results. All of these have brought about huge tangible benefits to our two peoples.

 Last May, we saw a historical change in the political arena of Malaysia and the assumption of office by Pakatan Harapan government. China-Malaysia relations have entered a new era. We are proud to note that China is the first country of Prime Minister Mathathir's first official visit in last August. In less than 10 months, Prime Minister Mahathir visited Beijing again to attend the 2nd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, bolstering Malaysia's earnest participation in the Belt and Road Initiative.

 On the sidelines of the event, Tun Mahathir met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and other Chinese leaders. After his talk with Premier Li, two leaders witnessed the signing of several key agreements with regards to palm oil trade, ECRL and Bandar Malaysia. Good news like these greatly boosted the confidence of our two peoples in further strengthening the bilateral mutually beneficial cooperation. These latest developments could be considered as best gifts for the 45th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. 

In the same spirit, tonight, the Chinese Embassy will present you a special gift for the 45th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. This is a micro-movie titled "Gift of Time", a joint production by the Chinese Embassy in Malaysia in collaboration with some talented Malaysian and Chinese artists. In a few minutes, we will have its premier. By making this movie, we want to show to the people around the world that how Chinese and Malaysian people always share weal and woe together, stride forward together shoulder by shoulder, hand in hand, heart to heart, despite the vicissitudes of both domestic as well as international situations over the past 45 years.

Tonight, I would like to give my special thanks and acknowledgements to those friends from Malaysia, who have made valuable contributions in the past 45 years to China-Malaysia friendly relations. I assure you, that your contribution will be marked in our hearts despite the flow of time. This is the spirit we want to get across in the movie.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, 

A few days ago, Tun Mahathir wrote in his message for the souvenir book composed by the Malaysia-China Friendship Association to mark the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries. I quote "I have always believed in the principle of 'prosper thy neighbor, and as China prospered, it has in turn prospered Malaysia as well" . To which I cannot agree more. The Chinese government and people are determined to further promote our already flourishing friendly relations with the Malaysian government and people and to achieve common prosperity through mutually beneficial cooperation. I believe China and Malaysia will always be good neighbors, trustworthy brothers and sincere friends in the years to come. I trust that under the guidance of our leaders and with the staunch and tireless efforts from us all, the China-Malaysia relations will embrace an even brighter and broader prospect, forging a better future for both peoples.

Ladies and gentlemen, with these words, I wish to conclude my remarks by saying: Long-Live China-Malaysia Relations!

Thank you!