国内英语新闻:Philippine President lauds Filipino-Chinese friendship

MANILA, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo lauded bilateral friendship at a ceremony held here Friday to mark the 35th anniversary of the establishment of Chinese-Philippine diplomatic relations.

Arroyo said "When I became President, I made June 9 every year Filipino-Chinese Friendship Day. In the past, I set aside June 9 to attend activities to my Filipino-Chinese Friendship Day in Manila. But this year, many of you will be with me in Shanghai to celebrate this occasion."

She said, "Our geographical ties, our trade relationship, our family relationship dates back centuries before our diplomatic relations and even before our two republics were established." "We are family, China and the Philippines are family." "We are family, more than neighbors."

"During my visits to China over the last nine years, I had the privilege of visiting many cities all over China, and was greeted with the highest-ranking officials, including President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao, and former President Jiang Zemin," she said.

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo receives a gift at the soiree celebrating the 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the Philippines and China, in Manila, capital of the Philippines, June 4, 2010.

China is now our third largest trading partner. China is also one of the fast growing sources of tourists for the Philippines. The Filipino businessmen have almost invested 3 billions U.S. dollars in China. Likewise, Chinese investments in the Philippines have also grown in the past decades.

She also said "I may not be President next month, next year, and the years to come, but as congresswoman...Let me assure you that I remain committed as ever to promoting and further strengthening a solid partnership between our two countries."

Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao said, "More than 35 years ago, our two countries were still overshadowed by zero-sum Cold-War mentality. Today, exchanges and mutual understanding at all levels have reached breath and depth never seen before.

He added that 35 years ago, China-Philippines trade volume was lingering around 72 million U.S. dollars. The figure spiked to a record-high at 30 billion U.S. dollars in 2007 and registered a quarter-on-quarter increase of more than 50 percent during the first three months of this year.

The numerous exchange visits of artists, writers, journalists, teachers, performers and sportsmen between our two countries have fostered deeper understanding of our ways of life as well as friendship between the Chinese and Filipino peoples. Only through friendship and mutual respect, through understanding and acceptance of common and contrasting characteristics, can nations truly live in an atmosphere of amity and harmony.

Alfons A. Uy, president of Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce, said Chinese-Filipino partnership flourished and grew stronger with the signing of the Joint Communique establishing diplomatic relations between China and the Philippines in 1975.

"We will also continue to lead the Chinese-Filipino community in undertaking projects that would promote national growth and development," he said.

The ceremony was jointly organized by the Federations of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry and other Chinese organs to mark the 112th Philippine Independence Day, the 35th anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and the Philippines and the 9th Filipino-Chinese Friendship Day.