On 12 December, the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Sydney hosted a reception celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Australia. Consul General H.E. Zhou Limin attended the reception and delivered the following remarks:

Your Excellency Margaret Beazley, Governor of New South Wales,

Your Honorable Geoff Lee, representative of NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and Minister for Corrections,

Dear friends from all sectors in NSW,

Representatives of local Chinese community, Chinese institutions and Chinese overseas students,

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

Good evening! 

Today, friends from both China and Australia gather together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. First of all, please allow me, on behalf of the Chinese Consulate General in Sydney, to extend our warm welcome and sincere thanks to all of the guests present.

China and Australia established diplomatic relations on December 21, 1972. Since then, China-Australia relations have opened a new chapter.

The establishment of diplomatic relations was forged by the older generation of leaders of both China and Australia，including Chairman Mao Zedong, Premier Zhou Enlai and the then Australian Prime Minsiter Gough Whitlam. In that time, this historic decision required extraordinary political wisdom and courage.

Over the past 50 years, thanks to the joint efforts of both sides, bilateral relations between our two countries have been developing smoothly on the whole and have long been at the forefront of China's relations with Western developed countries. China-Australia friendly exchanges and practical cooperation in various fields have yielded fruitful results, bringing tangible benefits to the people of both sides.

At the historic milestone of the 50th anniversary, I would like to pay tribute to the older generation of leaders of our two countries, including Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and Gough Whitlam, and express my appreciation and respects to people from all sectors in our two countries who have contributed to the development of China-Australia relations.

The 50 year history of China-Australia relations has brought us rich experiences, as well as important inspirations for the long-term growth of our bilateral relations.

First, a correct understanding is the prerequisite for the sustainable development of China-Australia relations. To deepen friendship and expand cooperation, China and Australia must first establish a correct understanding of each other. China is committed to the path of peaceful development and to developing friendly relations and cooperation with other countries on the basis of mutual respect and mutual benefit. China's development will only bring opportunities to the world, but will not pose a threat to any country. China hopes that Australia will view China and its development in a correct way and work with China to push forward bilateral friendly cooperative relations.

Second, mutual benefit and win-win results are the essence of China-Australia relations. China and Australia are highly complementary in resource endowment and industrial structure, making us natural partners for cooperation. Over the past 50 years, China and Australia have achieved fruitful results in practical cooperation across the board. While contributing to China's modernization drive, it has also brought prosperity to Australia in mining, agriculture, education, tourism and other fields and greatly boosted Australia's economic development. China is always open to mutually beneficial cooperation with Australia and hopes that the Australian side will adopt an open and cooperative attitude to provide a sound business environment for Chinese companies operating in Australia.

Third, people-to-people bond is the foundation for the long-term growth of China-Australia relations. China and Australia enjoy a long history of people-to-people exchanges. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 50 years ago, our two peoples have enjoyed closer exchanges and deeper friendship. State-to-state relations depend on amity between the people. The friendship between the Chinese and Australian peoples has always been a source of vitality for the growth of China-Australia relations and determines their resilience and durability. We hope that the Chinese and Australian people will continue to deepen mutual understanding and friendship so as to provide a better social foundation and public opinion atmosphere for the long-term development of the bilateral relations.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

The Chinese sage Confucius once said, "At 50, one knows the destiny of heaven." After half a century of trials and tribulations, China-Australia relations should be more mature and stable.

There have been some positive changes in China-Australia relations recently. Last month, President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit and reaffirmed that China and Australia should uphold the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit to improve, maintain and develop the bilateral relations.

China is ready to work with Australia to translate the leaders' consensus into concrete actions to promote the bilateral relations and create favorable conditions and atmosphere for their sustained, sound and steady growth.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

Two months ago, the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing. The Congress elected a new leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core, and laid out a blueprint for China's development in the next five years and beyond. The Congress has put forward a series of new concepts, ideas and conclusions, including promoting high-quality development, advancing high-level opening-up and accelerating the transition to a green development model, which will give a strong boost to China's efforts of achieving national rejuvenation through its own path to modernization, inject more stability and positive energy into the volatile world today, and provide new cooperation opportunities for Australia and other countries around the world.

NSW is a major force and a front runner for China-Australia practical cooperation. Under the current circumstances, China is ready to work with NSW to find common grounds in our development plans, give full play to our respective advantages, continue to consolidate exchanges and cooperation in various fields and open up new areas of cooperation.

In conclusion, I would like to propose a toast to the sustained development of China-Australia friendly and cooperative relations, to the enduring friendship between the Chinese and Australian peoples, and to the health, success and happiness of all of the distinguished guests.

Thank you!