Zhang Yesui, a "veteran of diplomacy," will appear for the fourth time as a spokesman for the National People's Congress

The Paper's chief reporter Diao Fanchao

Zhang Yesui. Infographic

According to the Press Center of the Fourth Session of the Thirteenth National People's Congress, the Fourth Session of the Thirteenth National People's Congress will hold a press conference at 21:40 on March 4 (Thursday) in the press conference hall of the Great Hall of the People, and the spokesperson of the congress will answer questions from Chinese and foreign journalists on the agenda of the congress and issues related to the work of the people's congress.

In 2018, Zhang Yesui took over Fu Ying as the spokesperson of the National People's Congress, and today will be his fourth appearance at the first press conference of the National People's Congress of the Two Sessions.

The "veteran of diplomacy" took over as the spokesman of the National People's Congress

At 11:00 a.m. on March 4, 2018, the first session of the 13th National People's Congress held a press conference, and the new spokesperson Zhang Yesui took over fu Ying's debut, becoming the eighth speaker since the establishment of the national people's congress. In addition to these two, Zeng Tao, Yao Guang, Zhou Jue, Zeng Jianhui, Jiang Enzhu, and Li Zhaoxing, who have served as speakers for the NPC, have successively served as speakers for the NPC.

To serve as a spokesperson for the National People's Congress, it is necessary not only to have skillful language control skills, but also to have a clear understanding of the country's internal affairs and foreign affairs. According to public information, Zhang Yesui was born in October 1953, a native of Hubei Province, and graduated from Beijing University of Foreign Chinese in 1975. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as soon as he graduated, and has been deeply involved in the field of foreign affairs for more than 40 years, from the International Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Protocol Department to the Assistant Minister and Deputy Minister, and also served as the First Secretary and Counsellor of the Permanent Mission to the United Nations, the Permanent Representative to the United Nations, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States of America.

The Washington Post once quoted UN staff as saying that Zhang Yesui effectively represented China's interests during his work at the UN.

Approachability is the intuitive impression left by Zhang Yesui, and he is always smiling in the camera. In the two sessions of the National People's Congress in 2018, Zhang Yesui made his debut at the press conference of the first session of the 13th National People's Congress and caught up with a new session, which was also an important meeting held in the first year of implementing the spirit of the 19th National Congress of the Party, the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up, the decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way, and the implementation of the "13th Five-Year Plan".

At the first press conference, Zhang Yesui answered a total of 11 questions, including legislative supervision by the National People's Congress, Sino-US economic and trade negotiations, foreign investment law, DPRK-US meeting, defense costs, the "Belt and Road", personal information security, and artificial intelligence. In the face of questions from Chinese and foreign reporters, Zhang Yesui did not hesitate to respond.

The Surging News (www.thepaper.cn) reporter combed and found that at the first press conference of the National People's Congress of the Two Sessions in the past three years, Zhang Yesui answered a total of 30 questions from Chinese and foreign reporters. Among them, 2018 and 2019 are 11 questions, and in 2020, due to the requirements of epidemic prevention and control, the meeting schedule has been shortened, and only 8 questions and answers have been retained, but each has attracted great attention.

Be concise and take a stand in the face of tough questions

At the press conference, in addition to the legislative supervision work of the people's congress that must be answered, as the debut of the press release work of the two sessions of the National People's Congress every year, the spokesman had to face tricky questions from foreign media.

In 2018, foreign media said in a question that "China's export of the Chinese model is to change the existing international order and rules." Zhang Yesui immediately stated China's position and attitude: "China insists on following its own path, neither importing foreign models nor exporting Chinese models, and will not ask other countries to copy China's practices." Of course, if some countries are interested in China's development experiences and practices, we are willing to discuss with them and share them, but we will never impose them on others. ”

He stressed: On the issue of international order, we do not want to start over and engage in subversion and substitution, but we must persist in being the defenders and builders of international order.

When asked by foreign media, the "Belt and Road" is China's geostrategic tool, and Zhang Yesui immediately responded: This is a misunderstanding of the "Belt and Road" initiative.

In the face of the global outbreak of the new crown pneumonia epidemic in 2020, Zhang Yesui responded unceremoniously in the face of the remarks of US congressmen accusing "the Chinese government is responsible for the spread of the epidemic in the United States": "There is no basis for facts." These statements are in grave violation of international law and norms governing international relations. We firmly oppose these bills and will firmly respond and counter them in accordance with the deliberations of the bills. ”

In the face of Chinese and foreign journalists, Zhang Yesui introduced to the international community that since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has effectively controlled the epidemic and safeguarded people's life safety and physical health through arduous efforts and huge costs. In an open, transparent and responsible manner, China has timely informed WHO and relevant countries of the epidemic situation, released information such as the genetic sequence of the virus at the first time, and made its best efforts to carry out international anti-epidemic cooperation, which has been widely recognized and praised by the international community.

"These are facts, and facts are facts. We will never accept any smear or attack. Zhang Yesui said firmly.

As ambassador to the United States, in the face of the prominent contradictions in Sino-US relations in 2020, the two sides have intensified conflicts on a series of issues, including the new crown epidemic, financial markets, Taiwan, Hong Kong and trade issues, Zhang Yesui has also expressed his expectations when interpreting Sino-US relations, especially after the epidemic. He said: As the largest developing country, the largest developed country, and the world's top two economies, China and the United States have very close economic and trade ties and personnel exchanges, and the two countries share extensive common interests. History has fully shown that Sino-US cooperation benefits both sides, and fighting hurts both, and cooperation is the only correct choice. Cooperation in fighting the epidemic and restoring the economy is a top priority, and it is in the interests of all parties to maintain the stability of the international economy and financial markets and the openness and security of the global supply chain.

At the press conference, Zhang Yesui used his own personal experience as an example: "My experience is that the common interests of China and the United States far outweigh the differences, and cooperation is the only correct choice for both sides." ”

Editor-in-Charge: Jiang Ziwen

Proofreader: Liu Wei