Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

Good evening and Namaste! Welcome to today’s reception and join us in celebrating the 98th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.

Over the past 98 years since its founding, the PLA, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, has endured the flames of war, forged ahead heroically, and achieved immortal feats. It has always been a Great Wall of Steel in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests. Looking around the world, the PLA actively upholds the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, and fulfills its responsibilities as the armed forces of a major country. With participation in nearly 30 UN peacekeeping missions and deployment of over 50,000 peacekeepers, the PLA has proved itself a disciplined force for peace and justice. Looking ahead, under the guidance of the Xi Jinping Thought on Strengthening the Military, the PLA will strive to advance the modernization of national defense and the armed forces, and accelerate the building of world-class armed forces, so as to provide strategic support for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and make greater contributions to world peace and development.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. In that life-and-death struggle between justice and evil, the righteous forces around the world, including China and India, stood shoulder to shoulder and defeated the once-invincible fascist forces. The Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression started the earliest and lasted the longest. With huge national sacrifice, China held ground in the main theater in the East of the World Anti-Fascist War, while India made important contributions to the victories in the battlefields including Myanmar, North Africa and Europe. China and India also fought side by side during the Anti-Fascist War. Specifically, large numbers of Indian workers participated in building the Ledo Road, which ruptured Japan’s land blockade of China. The Indian Medical Mission traversed thousands of miles to aid China, with Dr. Kotnis sacrificing his life. This enduring bond of mutual assistance forged with life and sweat remains a vital source of China-India friendship to this day.

Ladies and gentlemen,

As an ancient Chinese saying goes, ‌"taking history as a mirror enables one to perceive the law of rise and fall." The painful lessons of World War II remain fresh in our memory, and the torch of peace must be preserved and passed on through generations. Today, as changes unseen in a century accelerate across the world, unilateralism, protectionism, power politics and bullying pose severe challenges to humanity. We should firmly uphold the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law, and observe the basic norms of international relations underpinned by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. We should continuously promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization. China stands ready to work with the international community to implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, and jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of China-India diplomatic relations. Over the past 75 years, China-India relations have weathered winds and rains, yet friendship and cooperation have always been the mainstream. Last year, President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached important consensus in their meeting in Kazan, which pointed out the right direction for the improvement and development of bilateral relations. Recently, the two sides strengthened exchanges at all levels and friendly cooperation in various fields, and achieved positive outcomes. China stands ready to work with the Indian side to further implement the important consensus reached by our leaders and, guided by the principles of mutual respect and trust, peaceful coexistence, common development and win-win cooperation, expand exchanges and cooperation, properly address differences, enhance multilateral coordination, and thus advance the sustained, sound and stable growth of China-India relations. The SCO Summit will be held in Tianjin, China from August 31 to September 1. We stand ready to work with all SCO member states and partners, including India, to host a friendly, united and productive summit. It will witness the SCO embark on a new journey from China and advance the building of a more close-knit SCO community with a shared future.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Now, I would like to propose a toast:

To the 98th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army,

To the healthy and stable relations between our two countries and two militaries,

And to the peace and development of the world,

Cheers!