Ladies and gentlemen,

Dear Friends,

Good evening! It's my great pleasure to host the Chinese Lunar New Year reception again after 3 years of virtual celebrations. I'm so delighted to see so many friends old and new joining us on this special occasion. In three days, the Year of the Rabbit will come. In traditional Chinese culture, Rabbit stands for cleverness, agility and tenacity. With these auspicious promises, I'm sure 2023 will be a year of relentless efforts, fruitful outcomes and great prosperity. Let me take this opportunity to wish all the friends present tonight a happy and prosperous Year of the Rabbit!

The year 2022 is an extraordinary year for both China and the U.S., and for China-U.S. relations. The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held. The U.S. had its midterm election. China and the U.S. celebrated the 50th anniversary of the issuance of Shanghai Communique and Ping Pong Diplomacy.

In the past year, China-U.S. relations have achieved three "C" s.

First is high-level Communication. President Xi met with President Biden in Bali. They maintain close connections by phone and virtual meetings. The diplomatic and financial teams from both sides also maintain regular communication.

Second is pragmatic Cooperation. Despite the slowdown of world economic growth, the trade volume between China and the U.S. in the first ten months last year registered a 5.1% increase, exceeding 600 billion US dollars. The U.S. was set to resume soybean exports to China. Nearly 200 American companies attended the fifth China International Import Expo. 

Third is people-to-people Connection. Last year, we celebrated together the 50th anniversary of Shanghai Communique's issuance and Ping Pong Diplomacy and the 80th anniversary of Flying Tiger's founding, through which we renewed friendship and replayed the moving stories of history.

Last year, my colleagues and I visited many cities and towns of our consular district, making our efforts to advance China-U.S. friendship and sub-national cooperation. I visited factories and ports, seeing the outcomes of the mutual benefits and win-win cooperation between our two countries. At museums and theaters, I understood the meaning of the mutual learning and engagement between Eastern and Western cultures. In universities and schools, the strong call for communication and exchange between our two people impressed me most. At local communities, streets and farms, I was deeply moved by American people's sincerity and hospitality. I firmly believe that the foundation of China-U.S. friendship has its roots in sub-national exchanges and in the people.

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The year 2023 bears great significance for both of us to pursue new success. The Twentieth Party Congress outlined the blueprint for China to achieve modernization through a Chinese path. China will forge ahead with all efforts.

Two presidents' meeting in Bali charted the course for China-U.S. relations. Standing at the new starting point, we should fully implement two leaders' consensus, strengthen communication, deepen cooperation and constructively manage differences, so as to bring China-U.S. relations back to the track of sound and steady development.

I have three "R" s for my New Year wishes:

First is RESPECT. China and the U.S. have more common interests than differences. We have competition, but common development can be achieved through benign competition and mutually beneficial cooperation. China and the U.S. should, in spirit of mutual respect, see each other as partners and opportunities and create more common interests, for the benefits of two peoples.

Second is RECOVER. The pandemic has been lingering for three years. We need to catch up. We should seize new opportunities to recover and achieve new leaps in our cooperation, further advance people-to-people exchange, and enhance popular support for our relations.

Third is RESPONSIBILITY. China and the U.S., as two major countries, should shoulder our historical responsibilities. We should hold high the banner of multilateralism and open economy, address global challenges, build a community with a shared future for mankind, and make new contribution to the peace and development of the world.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The ten states of our consular district have always remained leading pioneers in our bilateral exchanges and cooperation. In history, a lot of breakthroughs took place in this region:

We have the first Chinese ping-pong team paying a friendly visit to the U.S. in New York. We have the first US philharmonic orchestra staging their ice-breaking concert in China. And we also have the first sister-states in Ohio. Many friends present tonight are not only the witnesses of these stories, but also the participants and promoters. You all greatly promote the friendly cooperation between our two countries.

I remember the lovely rabbit Judy in Disney film "Zootopia" says, "Dream big! Anyone can be anything." Let's join hands to write a more splendid chapter of China-U.S. relations in the Year of the Rabbit!

Thank you! Happy New Year!