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State Councilor Madam Chen,
Ambassador of Israel to China, Dr. Yehoyada Haim,
The Honorable Ambassador of China to Israel, Ambassador Chen,
Distinguished Members of the Israeli Delegation,
Friends, Supporters of the great friendship between the Republic of China and the State of Israel,
I am honored to celebrate this evening with all of you the 15th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and the State of Israel. These 15 years were very dramatic. It started 15 years ago and almost instantly it expanded into almost every aspect of life. Today, relations between China and Israel are rich, truthful, constructive and very worthwhile for both countries.
This is a meeting between two countries and at the same time, it is a meeting between two cultures and two great traditions – the tradition of the great Chinese people and the tradition of the great Jewish people.
You bring to these relationships the enormous achievements of one of the most powerful nations on the Earth, and we bring the great Jewish traditions which have been part of the Western civilization for so many years, and which also have roots in your country and in this region.
As is said, these were the first 15 years of diplomatic relations, but the continuation of one thousand years of great friendship between two great peoples.
I take this opportunity to thank the President of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, the government, the ministers, and, most of all, the people of China for the warm welcome to the representatives of the State of Israel, and the great friendship between our two countries, and to the great future which I am sure awaits both of us, and will flourish with the further expansion of our relations in all aspects of life.
These last three days were very warm, even when it was somewhat cold outside because of the weather. But your warm welcome, your friendship, the understanding and the shared desire to expand these relations is a message which I will proudly bring back with me to the State of Israel. Thank you for being a part of this very important and festive evening. I am sure that now we are going to enjoy great artists, who will present our two cultures and two countries.
Thank you very much.
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