Chinese Vice President Hu Jintao met Wednesday afternoon with council members and others attending the eighth council meeting of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) held in Beijing on May 28 and 29.
In his speech, Hu congratulated the CPAFFC on the success of the meeting and expressed respect for those who contributed to the country's friendly exchanges with the rest of the world.
Hu said the CPAFFC had dedicatedly carried out national diplomatic policies and had done much to promote friendship between the Chinese people and other peoples in the world and to advance friendly relations between China and other countries.
The three generations of Chinese leaders Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin paid great attention to people-to-people diplomacy, Hu Jintao said. They played their own parts in making lots of foreign friends, setting splendid examples for such efforts.
Hu said that with the attention and guidance of the Chinese leaders, China's people-to-people diplomacy was rooted in the people, focused on the people and had hope in the people. People- to-people diplomacy had made historic contributions in ushering in new eras in China's diplomacy from time to time.
Hu pointed out that in the current situation, people-to-people diplomacy should contribute anew to the creation of a favorable, peaceful international environment and a sound climate for China's reform, opening up and modernization drive.
Hu urged comrades involved in people-to-people diplomacy to seriously study Deng Xiaoping theory and Jiang Zemin's statements on diplomacy. He called for creative efforts and innovation to raise people-to-people diplomacy to a new level.
Among the people attending the meeting were Zeng Qinghong, Wang Guangying, Tomur Dawamat, Jiang Zhenghua, Ismail Amat, Wang Wenyuan, Liu Huaqiu, Li Zhaoxing and Chen Haosu.
(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2002)
