Chinese FM's speech on Xi's upcoming visit to US (2)

I wish to reiterate that the Nansha Islands are China's territory. This is backed by historical and legal facts. It is simply understandable for a sovereign country to uphold its own territorial sovereignty and prevent its legitimate rights and interests from being undermined. At the same time, China is committed to finding peaceful solution to disputes through dialogue and consultation on the basis of international law. China is committed to advancing COC consultations toward early agreement and to rule-based and proper management of differences. China is committed to peace and stability in the South China Sea and to freedom of navigation and overflight by all countries in accordance with law. These are China's positions that will stay unchanged.

Efforts to enhance trust and reduce misgivings between China and the US are aimed to promote sound growth of bilateral relations and deepen win-win cooperation between the two sides at the regional and global levels.

We believe that as long as China and the United States could work to enhance mutual respect and hold firm to the bottom line of no conflict and no confrontation, it will lay the ground work for even greater progress in win-win cooperation.

We hope China and the US could work together to uphold the UN-centered international order and international system. Both countries could act as strong supporters of the norms governing international relations that are based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

Secondly, President Xi's visit will focus on cooperation between China and the United States. Over 200 years ago, a US merchant ship loaded with specialties arrived in China. That marked the beginning of trade between the two countries. Within the past decades following the establishment of diplomatic ties, bilateral trade had grown from nothing to 555.1 billion US dollars. Two-way investment increased from almost zero to more than 120 billion US dollars. Chinese companies made direct investments in 45 US states in growing amounts. China-US interaction and cooperation in international and regional affairs continued to expand. Such cooperation included hotspot issues like the Iranian nuclear issue, the Korean nuclear issue, the question of Afghanistan, as well as global challenges ranging from climate change and counter-terrorism to peace-keeping and poverty reduction and development. It is fair to say that the all-dimensional and strategic cooperation between China and the US has provided new drivers to boost not just bilateral relations, but also the cause of global peace and development.

President Xi's visit will take China-US cooperation to a new level. The two sides are expected to reach important agreement in economy and trade, energy, people-to-people exchange, climate change, environmental protection, finance, science and technology, agriculture, law enforcement, defense, aviation and infrastructure development. A large number of cooperation agreements that will have far-reaching impacts will be signed. The two sides will have in-depth exchange of views and step up coordination and cooperation on regional and international hotspot issues. This visit will expand the scope of common interests and add more substance to the new model of major country relations between the two countries.

The two sides will endeavor to bridge differences and strive for new and important progress in BIT negotiations, which will open up new prospects and create new sources of growth for China-US cooperation.

The two sides will work together to deepen economic cooperation and trade, and set higher and more ambitious targets for two-way trade and investment.

The two sides will expand cooperation on climate change and, while adhering to their respective basic positions, push forward multilateral negotiations to fulfill their due responsibilities as major countries in the world.

The two sides will have a deep-going discussion on the current global economic and financial situation, and step up communication and coordination on domestic economic policies. We expect a positive signal to be sent by the two sides that they will work together in real earnest to uphold stability and growth of the global economy.

The two sides will actively advance development cooperation that is based on the consent and participation of third countries. They may tap their respective strengths to contribute to balanced global development and attainment of the UN post-2015 development goals.

The two sides will step up dialogue on cyber issues, work together to combat all forms of cyber-crimes according to law, uphold cyber security and carry out cooperation in cyberspace. They could both play a constructive role and jointly make global cyberspace peaceful, secure, open and cooperation-oriented.

The two sides will step up cooperation on a broad range of regional and international issues, such as cooperation in the Asia-Pacific, implementation of the Iranian nuclear agreement, counter-terrorism, law enforcement, denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, global governance, international peacekeeping, wildlife protection, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. This will underline the two sides' commitment to world peace, stability and development.

Thirdly, President Xi's visit will be a people-first visit. China-US friendly relations are powered by the people, and rooted in the people. Forty-four years ago, the visit of the US table tennis team to China opened a new chapter in China-US friendly relations and contacts. Reform and opening up in China led to a new wave of thriving exchanges among the people and regions of the two countries.

Today, the two countries have established 43 sister province/state relations and 200 sister city relations. Last year, about 4.3 million mutual visits were made across the Pacific, and there is a flight between the two countries every 17 minutes. The number of students studying in each other's country has exceeded 500,000. China and the US are now each other's No.1 and No.2 sources of international students. More than 100,000 American students have studied in China and more than 10,000 American scholars and academics have made exchange visits to China. The US is now home to 100 plus Confucius Institutes and hundreds of thousands of American school graders are studying Chinese. Last year, during the meeting of the two presidents in Beijing, the two sides announced reciprocal visa arrangements for business, tourism and study purposes. This went a long way to promoting people-to-people exchanges and was warmly welcomed by the people of both countries.

A major highlight of President Xi's visit to the US will be his extensive outreach to the American people.

President Xi's visit will start from Seattle on the west coast where he will meet people from all walks of life. Throughout the visit, President Xi will devote a lot of time to reaching out to people in American cities and states, the business community, friendly groups, and a broad cross-section of American society. The President will deliver speeches to the general public, hold meetings with representatives of business leaders and have cordial exchanges with school faculties and students. The two sides will also announce a series of major measures, which will bring some further good news to students, tourists and other people traveling between the two countries. President Xi's visit will generate a new wave of interest in China and take people-to-people exchange to new heights.

Let me add that China's sustained development and growing cooperation between the two countries in economic, trade and other fields will continue to benefit the two peoples and make a tangible difference for them. For instance, in trade and investment, it is estimated that by 2022, China will become the world's biggest importer and China and the US are on track to becoming each other's biggest trading partner. US export to China is expected to surpass 530 billion US dollars and generate more than 3.34 million new jobs. According to the China-United States Exchange Foundation, by 2020, China's investment in the US will reach 200 billion US dollars and create 4 million new jobs for US workers.

Fourthly, President Xi's visit will be future-oriented. During the visit, the two sides will not only take stock of the past and enhance mutual trust, but more importantly, they will work together to articulate a vision for the future.

China and the US are two permanent members of the UN Security Council and the world's biggest and second biggest economies. The direction of China-US relations not only concerns the vital interests of the two peoples, but also bears on the future of the Asia-Pacific and the whole world. Therefore, many countries will follow the visit closely, hoping to understand more about China's development orientation in the future and get clues for reasonable expectation for China-US relations. They will be looking for signals on whether the two countries are competing or cooperating, and whether they will live together in peace or get stuck in friction or even confrontation. (Mo