Chinese Ambassador to Germany: The city with the most bridges in the world is Hamburg, and we hope to build more bridges of understanding, cooperation and friendship between China and Germany and China and Europe

On September 23, the website of the Chinese Embassy in Germany announced that Ambassador Wu Keng delivered a speech at the 2021 online National Day reception of the Consulate General in Hamburg. The content is as follows:

It is a great pleasure to gather with you to attend the online reception of the Consulate General in Hamburg to celebrate the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Affected by the epidemic, it is a pity that today we cannot gather together face-to-face, looking forward to the early end of the epidemic and the early meeting with friends in North Germany.

2021 is a landmark year in the history of New China. This year, Chinese people celebrated the centenary of the Communist Party of China and witnessed the rapid development of China's various undertakings. In particular, General Secretary Xi Jinping solemnly declared at the conference celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China that China has built a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and has historically solved the problem of absolute poverty. This remarkable achievement in the annals of history not only embodies the hard work and dedication of hundreds of millions of Chinese people, but also is inseparable from the positive contributions of overseas compatriots and friendly exchanges and cooperation between China and foreign countries.

This year, although the epidemic is still raging, it has brought many difficulties to our lives, especially international exchanges. But it is gratifying that Sino-German exchanges and cooperation in various fields have not stagnated, but have shown strong resilience and creativity. President Xi Jinping and Chancellor Angela Merkel maintained frequent and efficient exchanges, and conducted four video and telephone communications, leading the way for the development of China-Germany and China-EU relations. The two prime ministers presided over the sixth round of consultations between the Chinese and German governments to jointly plan and promote cooperation in various fields. In the context of the general decline in global trade, the trade volume between the two countries rose against the trend in the first half of this year, up 34.2% year-on-year to 112.88 billion US dollars, and the annual trade volume is expected to hit a record high again. At the same time, China and Germany, as countries with important international influence, have maintained close communication and cooperation on multilateralism, free trade, climate change, African development and issues of common concern through various mechanisms and channels, and have played a constructive role in safeguarding world peace and stability.

The cooperation between the four North German states, where the Chinese Consulate General in Hamburg is located, and China is a vivid embodiment of this close and innovative cooperative relationship. In particular, the establishment of the innovation cooperation mechanism between North Germany and China's Yangtze River Delta region not only links the two regions with the most economic vitality and innovation potential of the two countries, but also injects new impetus into the innovation cooperation between the two sides. Under this cross-regional cooperation mechanism, the two sides have held a variety of exchange activities such as online seminars, online shopping festivals, and visits to the Yangtze River Delta by North German economic circles. I am confident that later HWWI experts will see, through their prospective research, more opportunities and potential for this cross-regional collaboration.

Ladies and gentlemen, friends,

Next year we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Germany. In the past 50 years, Sino-German relations have made great progress. This development is not only reflected in the well-known economic and trade and investment fields, but also in a wide range of fields such as politics, culture, science and technology, education, and sports. Of course, we have every reason to be proud of the fruitful results of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, after all, the bilateral trade volume is now more than 20 million US dollars per hour. This pragmatic cooperation has not only achieved economic growth and employment for each other, but also brought tangible benefits to the enterprises and peoples of the two countries.

When it comes to Sino-German cooperation, we must not forget the role of the "forerunner" in the North German region. The first sino-German pair of friendly provinces and prefectures came from The Lower SaZhou under the leadership of Governor Weier, and as early as the 1980s, the Lower Sa Prefecture was united with China's Anhui Province. In July this year, Governor Weier also paid a cloud visit to Anhui Province, which led to a number of cooperation agreements, which fully reflected the vitality of cooperation between the two sides. Here I would also like to mention in particular the success story of Volkswagen Group's cooperation with China, Volkswagen is one of the first foreign car companies to enter the Chinese market, which has achieved a good story of win-win cooperation between China and Germany.

In fact, Hamburg has been married to Shanghai, Shihezhou and Zhejiang, Bremen and Dalian for more than 35 years, and there are also many cooperation stories worth mentioning. It is not only one of the earliest regions in Europe to start cooperation with China, but also an important bridgehead connecting China and Germany and China-Europe cooperation today. The first Chinese consulate general in Western Europe was located here, and the decision proved to be completely correct. We are pleased to see that the Port of Hamburg and Bremerhaven are not only important stations connecting the Maritime Silk Road, but also extend the China-Europe express train to Hamburg and Hanover and other North German cities. For decades, the North German region has embraced cooperation with China in the Hanseatic spirit of openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation. I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to Governor Weier and the Speakers of Parliaments, as well as to the governments and parliaments of the four states and municipalities for their valuable support in promoting cooperation between the two sides.

2021 will also be a landmark year in German political life. In three days, elections for a new Bundestag will be held. After 16 years in power, Chancellor Angela Merkel will have a new chancellor. I don't want to predict how the election will turn out here, but I wish all parties the best of luck in the election! Regardless of the ruling mix, China will, as always, regard Germany as an important partner and maintain close dialogue and cooperation with the new government. We also hope that the new government will continue to pursue a positive and pragmatic policy of cooperation with China and jointly promote the stable and in-depth development of China-Germany relations. I believe that this is also the common expectation of people from all walks of life in North Germany.

Before attending today's reception, I just learned that the city with the most bridges in the world is not Venice, London or Amsterdam, but Hamburg, where the Consulate General is located. In this complex and ever-changing era, especially under the barrier of the epidemic, the world needs more "bridges" to enhance mutual trust and cooperation. Let us work together to build a bridge of understanding, cooperation and friendship between China and Germany and between China and Europe. We sincerely hope that all sectors of society in the two countries, including the North German region, will continue to deepen exchanges and mutual learning and mutually beneficial cooperation, and promote a better future for China-Germany relations.