His Excellency Ambassador Wang Baodong's Speech at the Reception Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between China and Tonga

尊敬的皮洛萊烏公主殿下和圖伊塔閣下，

尊敬的波希瓦首相閣下，

尊敬的法卡法努阿議長閣下，

尊敬的各位內(nèi)閣大臣、貴族成員、議會議員，

各位駐湯使節(jié)，

湯加華社代表，

女士們，先生們，朋友們，

Your Royal Highness Princess Pilolevu and Honorable Lord Tuita,

Honorable Prime Minister 'Akilisi Pohiva,

Honorable Speaker Lord Fakafanua,

Honorable Ministers of the Cabinet, Nobles of the Realm, Members of the Parliament,

Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

Members of the Chinese Community,

Ladies, gentlemen and friends,

　　晚上好！今天，11月2日，是中華人民共和國與湯加王國建交20周年紀念日。今晚，我們歡聚一堂，慶祝這個具有歷史意義的日子。在此，我謹代表中國駐湯加使館，對各位嘉賓的光臨表示熱烈歡迎！

　　中國有句古詩，“相知無遠近，萬里尚為鄰”。中國和湯加雖然遠隔重洋，但兩國人民之間的友好交往源遠流長。上世紀末，圖普四世國王從湯加的長遠發(fā)展出發(fā)，提出“向東看”政策，并作出與臺灣當局“斷交”的正確決策。1998年10月26日，時任湯加外交和國防大臣的圖普六世國王訪問中國，代表湯加王國政府與中國政府代表簽署公報，決定兩國自當年11月2日起相互承認并建立大使級外交關系。湯加王國政府莊嚴承認世界上只有一個中國，中華人民共和國政府是代表全中國的唯一合法政府，臺灣是中國領土不可分割的一部分。中湯建交是具有歷史意義的重大事件，符合我們兩國和兩國人民的共同利益，兩國關系從此翻開了嶄新的一頁。

Malo e lelei! Good evening! Today is November 2, the 20th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Tonga, and we get together happily to celebrate this historic date. On behalf of the Chinese Embassy in Tonga, I hereby extend warm welcome to all of you for your kind presence.

There is a line from a Chinese poem, "Distance cannot separate true friends who feel so close even when they are thousands of miles apart". Although China and Tonga are separated by vast oceans, the friendly interaction between our peoples has a long history. At the end of last century, His Late Majesty King Tupou IV put forward the diplomatic policy of "looking east" for the long-term development of Tonga and made the right decision to sever ties with the Taiwan authorities. On October 26, 1998, His Majesty King Tupou VI, who was then Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defence of Tonga visited China, and on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Tonga, signed the Joint Communique on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations with his counterpart in the Chinese Government. According to the Communique, the two countries mutually recognize each other and establish diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level from November 2, 1998; the Government of the Kingdom of Tonga solemnly recognizes that there is but one China in the world, the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government that represents the whole China, and Taiwan is an inalienable part the Chinese territory. The realization of diplomatic ties between China and Tonga is a major event of historic significance and is in the common interests of our two countries and two peoples, thus opening a brand new chapter in China-Tonga relations.