|
Consul General Gao Yanping and Governor of Texas Rick Perry Jointly Hold the Reception Celebrating WORLD EXPO 2010 Shanghai China & China-Texas Friendly Relations
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
2010/05/11 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On the afternoon of April 27th, Consul General Gao Yanping of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Houston and Texas Governor Rick Perry jointly held a reception celebrating World Expo 2010 Shanghai China & China-Texas friendly relations. About 200 people attended the reception, including representatives of Senator John Cornyn, Congressman Al Green, Congressman John Culberson, Mayor of Houston Annise Parker and Mayor of San Antonio Julian Castro, Houston City Council Member Brenda Stardig, Anne Clutterbuck, Jarivis Johnson and Al Hoang, the dignitaries from all walks of life and leaders of Chinese communities. Deputy Consul General Zhou Ding of the Chinese Consulate General, Jeff Leung, Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco, Yao Ming, Image Ambassador of Shanghai World Expo, Consuls General of more than 10 countries like Mexico, Japan, German Egypt, etc., and staff of the Chinese Consulate General in Houston were present. Some 20 Journalists covered the reception, including those from Xinhua News Agency, CCTV, Phoenix TV, ABC 13, FOX 26, Southern Chinese Daily News, etc.
On behalf of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Houston and the Honorable Governor Rick Perry, Consul General Gao extended her warmest greetings to all the guests. She illustrated the concrete figures and facts achieved by the increasing exchanges and cooperation in all fields between China and the United States in the past three decades since the establishment of the diplomatic relationship of the two countries. Consul General Gao said, the two-way trade volume in 2008 exceeded $330 billion, 137 times of the volume in 1979. The personal exchanges in 2009 reached 2.1 million, 210 times of that in 1979. There are about 20,000 American students studying in China and 100,000 more are expected to study in Chinese university campuses in the upcoming four years. The leaders of China and the U.S. have reached important consensus on jointly building a positive, cooperative and comprehensive China-U.S. relationship. A healthy and stable China-U.S. relationship serves the fundamental interests of our two countries and peoples as well as contributes to world peace, stability and prosperity.
Consul General Gao said, exchanges and cooperation between China and Texas in all fields have been steadily increased. Texas' export to China in 2009 mounted $8.91 billion, ranking the 3rd place in the 50 States of the U.S., about 10 times of that in 1999. Big companies in Texas have huge investment in China. Nearly 100 Chinese enterprises have set up their branch offices in Texas. There are more than 5,000 Chinese students and 3 Confucius Institutes in Texas university campuses. Consul General Gao introduced the Shanghai World Expo,which scores a number of records in the Expo history: the first World Expo held in a developing country; the first World Expo under the theme of "the city" - "Better City, Better Life"; the most popular World Expo in terms of the number of attending countries and state leaders at the grand opening ceremony. The Shanghai World Expo will serve as a wonderful bridge of friendship and cooperation between our two countries and peoples. She is very glad that Governor Perry and First Lady are leading a Texas delegation to visit China and attend the Shanghai World Expo in June. There will be "Texas week" events at the USA Pavilion. Consul General Gao expressed her best wishes to Governor Perry's first trip to China.
Governor Rick Perry said, there is a strong and extraordinary relationship between Texas and China. The mutual beneficial exchanges and cooperation are growing everyday, providing a broad prospect for cooperation. The two-way trade has developed very fast. Now China has become the third largest trading partner right after Mexico and Canada and the second largest importing source to Texas, creating many job opportunities and bringing tangible benefits to the people of Texas. Governor Perry welcomed the Chinese enterprises to invest and do business in Texas. He said, The Cultural connection between Texas and China is also getting closer. Governor Perry said, he is excited at his first visit to China. He is looking forward to learning more about Chinese history and culture, experiencing China's fast economic development in person. He will make efforts to promote mutual beneficial cooperation between Texas and China, help the two peoples learn from each other and enjoy the prosperity together. Consul General Gao also presented a proclamation to Governor Perry, appreciating his efforts to enhance the exchanges and cooperation between China and Texas in all fields. Four Houston City Council Members delivered speeches respectively, wishing the Shanghai Expo a great success. They said, the Shanghai Expo is a platform for the world people to learn from each other. It will enhance the mutual understanding and friendship between the U.S. and China, strengthen the bilateral relations and benefit the two peoples. Houston City Council Member Brenda Stardig, Anne Clutterbuck, Al Hoang and Jarvis Johnson, Ms. Constanze Sere, Representative of Congressman John Culberson presented certificates to Consul General Gao respectively, recognizing the efforts by the Chinese Consulate General in Houston to promote the exchanges and cooperation between China and the southern States of the U.S. and wishing Shanghai Expo a great success. Congressman Pete Sessions sent a Letter of Congratulation to the event, wishing a successful Shanghai Expo which will highlight the positive friendship between China and the United States.
The Shanghai Expo Image Ambassador Yao Ming, an eminent basketball player, wished Governor Perry a successful visit to Shanghai, China, his hometown.
All the guests wished the 2010 Shanghai World Expo a great success and good prospect of China-U.S. friendly relations.
Wang Min, Consul of Chinese Consulate, performing vocal solo Chinese overseas and American students from University of Houston and staff from the Chinese Consulate General presented splendid performances. Happiness and joy were enjoyed all the way through the reception.
Consul General Gao receiving Media Interview
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
