The 30th anniversary of the restoration of China's lawful seat in the United Nations (UN) was celebrated in Beijing Wednesday, with recollections of China's contributions to world peace and development since 1971 offered by Vice Premier Qian Qichen.
At a reception hosted by Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan, Qian said: "as a founding member of the UN and its permanent member, China has over the past 30 years strictly abided by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and worked tirelessly for an enhanced UN role."
China's foreign policy calls for maintaining world peace and promoting common development, he said.
"China stands for upholding and safeguarding the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the universally recognized norms governing international relations," he said.
Commenting on the fight against terrorism, Qian said that terrorism has become a global scourge for the international community. "Combating terrorism requires international cooperation as well as the participation of the UN and its Security Council."
Through the earnest implementation of the UN Millennium Declaration, countries should step up economic and technical exchanges and cooperation, and gradually put an end to the unfair and irrational international economic order, Qian said, adding that economic globalization will lead to peaceful coexistence, which means everybody wins.
"China stands for long-term coexistence of civilizations and social systems in the world, which features dialogue, like-mindedness and common development," he said.
Qian noted that China will take an even more active part in the affairs of the United Nations, and will participate in and push for global cooperation with an even more open approach.
"We will work more vigorously, together with all the peace-loving countries and peoples everywhere, to turn our world into one of lasting peace and prosperity for all," he said.
Cameroon Ambassador to China Eleih Elle Etian and Resident Co-ordinator of UN System's Operational Activities for Development Kerstin Leitner also addressed the reception.
Etian, also chief of the diplomatic delegation to China, spoke highly of the cooperative relations between China and UN, as well as China's efforts toward world peace and development.
Etian said that the restoration of China's lawful rights in the United Nations, marked by the passage of UN Resolution 2758 in 1971, corrected a serious error in history.
(People's Daily October 24,2001)
