The year 2006 is seen as a year of "harvest" for Chinese diplomacy, during which China progressed in developing relations with world powers, neighboring countries, developing countries and in multilateral diplomacy, a senior Chinese diplomat said in Beijing Tuesday.

 

Wu Jianmin, president of the Foreign Affairs University and former Chinese Ambassador to France, made these remarks while commenting on China's diplomacy in 2006.

 

"We have seen progress this year in relations between China and major world powers including the United States, Japan and Russia," Wu said, adding that the development of China-US relations is a shining point and the upcoming bilateral economic strategic dialogue is the first of its kind to promote economy.

 

On the Taiwan issue, the United States have sent clear warning signals whenever the Taiwan secessionists appeared to stir trouble, Wu said.

 

"This shows that it is a consensus to maintain stability across Taiwan straits," he added.

 

Japan's new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to China represented a turning point in bilateral ties, ending a five-year political stalemate between the two countries, Wu said.

 

Major events in China's diplomacy with neighboring countries include the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit and the China-ASEAN commemorative summit.

 

Wu said the success of both summits demonstrated the important progress China has made in relations with its neighboring countries.

 

The China-Africa summit had made the world notice a new dawn in the development of China-Africa relations, he noted.

 

Multilateral diplomacy is a platform for enhancing a harmonious world, he said. As an outcome of China's multilateral diplomacy, Margaret Chan had been elected as World Health Organization chief, he added.

 

Chinese President Hu Jintao put forward a concept of a "harmonious world" at the UN Assembly in 2005. Guided by this concept, China's diplomacy has stepped onto a new stage in 2006, Wu said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 6, 2006)