Remarks by Chargé d’Affaires Zhou Kan at the Reception For the 75th Anniversary of the Founding of The People’s Republic of China
19 September 2024
Your Excellency Airlangga Hartarto, Coordinating Minister of Economy,
Your Excellency Your Excellency Sandiaga Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy,
Distinguished Ambassadors,
Dear Chinese citizens and Chinese communities in Indonesia,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Friends,
Good evening! It is a great pleasure to be here with you tonight to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. On behalf of my colleagues at the Embassy, I wish to extend a warm welcome to all our distinguished guests!
Over the past 75 years, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, ancient China has taken on a new look with remarkable development achievements. Particularly in the past decade, under the wise leadership of President Xi Jinping, China has entered a new era of development. We set out to realize the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the whole nation, via the Chinese path toward modernization. We focus on high-quality development, with our economy being the world’s second-largest. We concentrate on poverty alleviation, complete the historic mission of building a moderately prosperous society, and deliver the first centenary goal. We accelerate scientific and technological self-reliance and have made breakthroughs in core technologies. China has become one of the leading countries in innovation with growing strategic emerging industries.
Last July, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was successfully held, drawing global attention with great significance. The Session made systematic plans for further deepening reforms and advancing Chinese modernization, pointing out that we need to adhere to the basic national policy of opening up and build a higher-level open economic system. This will provide a solid underpinning for Chinese modernization and promote the building of an open world economy. Countries around the world, including Indonesia, follow the meeting closely, not only because it brings more opportunities but also due to the important value and global significance of Chinese modernization. China, having integrated into the world through reform and opening up, is bound to move toward the future through comprehensive deepening of reforms. China will play a more responsible role with greater global influence, strength in innovation, and moral appeal, benefiting the global community.
Ladies and gentlemen,
China and Indonesia are friendly neighbors, and both are important developing countries and emerging economies. Under the strategic guidance of our two Presidents, China-Indonesia relations are operating at a high level and in the best period in history.
Political mutual trust has deepened. In the past two years, the two Presidents visited each other four times. President-elect Prabowo made his first overseas visit to China. Our two Presidents have set out the general direction of jointly building the China-Indonesia community with a shared future, and reached new important consensus on the path toward the goal. Both sides have made full use of High-level Dialogue and Cooperation Mechanism (HDCM) and Joint Committee for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) to advance practical cooperation in various fields. The two countries have established the Foreign and Defense Ministers’ Dialogue Mechanism (2+2), and successfully held its inaugural SOM Meeting last month. It will inject new impetus into the China-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Practical cooperation has yielded fruitful results. Whoosh has been in operation for a year, with over 5 million passengers transported. “Two Countries, Twin Parks” is progressing steadily and expected to become a new flagship project of Belt and Road cooperation. Bilateral trade volume exceeds $100 billion. China has been Indonesia’s largest trading partner for 11 consecutive year. It is among the top three sources of foreign investment in Indonesia for 8 years. Chinese EVs have taken root in Indonesia, contributing to green development. The industrial and supply chain cooperation has achieved significant progress, bringing mutual benefits.
People-to-people exchanges have become more active. In recent years, an increasing number of Indonesian youths choose China for higher education. The folk music ensemble and Xinjiang art troupe from China performed successfully in Indonesia. Indonesian religious leaders visited China multiple times. China Space and Chinese language training classes are open at Istiqlal Mosque. Youth representatives from China and Indonesia paid mutual visits. Chinese music, online games, and various daily technology products are popular among young people in Indonesia. In 2023, over 700,000 Chinese tourists came to Indonesia to experience its unique scenery.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This year, China commemorated the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. Next year marks the 70th Anniversary of the Bandung Conference. The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence are consistent with Bandung Spirit, both being the fundamental guidelines for handling state-to-state relations. As the world undergoes profound changes and humanity faces numerous challenges, we should continue to uphold the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, carry forward the Bandung Spirit, and work together for an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, making new contributions to world peace, stability, and prosperity.
The year 2025 also marks the 75th Anniversary of the diplomatic ties between China and Indonesia. We will jointly hold a series of commemorative events. Let us take this opportunity to move forward the building of the China-Indonesia community with a shared future, take bilateral cooperation to new heights, and improve the well-being of our two peoples.
Now, I would like to propose a toast,
To the prosperity of China and Indonesia,
To the enduring friendship between our two nations,
To the health of all distinguished guests and your families.
Cheers!
