United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon promised on Saturday to mobilize efforts from the United Nations to support China's quake relief and post-quake reconstruction.

Ban said the Chinese government demonstrated extraordinary leadership to overcome this natural disaster.

He said the United Nations has taken initial measures to donate necessary fund and send rescue people, and it wants to figure out how best to help with the reconstruction.

Ban said he is convinced that the Chinese government has the capacity of mobilizing the nation's resources, and this would be replenished under the United Nations' framework.

"The whole world stands behind you and supports you," he said, wishing for a victory in quake relief by the Chinese people.

"What is important is that you are determined to win," he said.

Ban made the remarks in an open area Saturday noon shortly after his arrival at Yingxiu town of Wenchuan County, epicenter of the May 12 earthquake, to express his sympathy for those who suffered from the devastating quake.

Ban won loud applause from the people standing around.

Yingxiu, in Sichuan Province, is one of the zones worst-stricken by the 8.0-magnitude earthquake, which had claimed 55,740 lives nationwide as of Friday noon, or 55,239 in Sichuan alone as of 7:00 PM Thursday.

(Xinhua News Agency May 24, 2008)