Shangguan: “Anti-corruption campaigns aren’t about wanting to cull all the errant party cadres”

The following is a translation of a “Shangguan” article. Shangguan (“Shanghai Observer”) has been Jiefang Daily‘s (or “Liberation Daily’s”) online news medium since April 1997, according to Wiki Mandarin.

Jiefang Daily is “the official daily newspaper of the Shanghai Committee of the Communist Party of China”. The article translated here probably targets, above all, party cadres.

It mainly contains two messages which – from a totalitarian point of view – probably don’t contradict each other:

• If you have violated party discipline and the law, you can’t escape the organization
• If you have violated party discipline and the law, you should trust the organization and turn yourselves in before your offenses are exposed by the organization – the org will then be comparatively lenient.

Links within blockquotes have been added during translation.

Xi speaking, cadres taking notes – CCTV evening news on July 24, 2013 (archive).

Main Link:
Secretly returning the money, resisting the organization, fleeing abroad with the money, actively turning oneself in … after breaking discipline and the law, they made entirely different decisions. (悄悄退钱，对抗组织，携款外逃，主动投案……违纪违法后，他们做出了截然不同的选择)

Summary: Under high pressure and awe, political appeals and legal case examples, there will be even more errant cadres who will take the road of actively surrender.

摘要：相信在高压震慑、政策感召和越来越多的案例示范下，还会有更多犯错的党员干部走上主动投案这条路。

Recently, some party cadres who had violated discipline and the law have been exposed. They had gone too far on the wrong road of mistakes, and stood on the edge, facing the abyss. Which path should they take from there?

最近曝光了一些违纪违法的党员干部，他们在错误的道路上走得太远，一直走到了悬崖边，脚下临深渊，该何去何从？

Different people made different choices …

不同人做出了不同的选择——

Some people became anxious and worried, looked around undecidedly, wanting to find a secure lane to safety. They reassured themselves by returning the money they had received. Baotou National Rare Earth Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone People’s Procuratorate’s former inspector Li Shuyao and former Guizhou Province’s Duyun city deputy mayor Liu Shengjun both received money and feared afterwards that the matter could fall through and be exposed. So they returned the money to the briber, as if this would unmake it all.

有人惶惶不安，彷徨四顾，想找到一条安全上岸的小路，于是选择了一个自我安慰的方式——把收来的钱原路退回去。包头市稀土高新技术产业开发区人民检察院原检察官李书耀，贵州省都匀市原副市长刘胜军，都是在收了钱之后感觉事情可能要败露了，又把钱退给行贿人，仿佛这样做，就可以当一切都没发生过。

Some people obstinately persisted in handling things the wrong way. The organization had already discovered their issues and reached out to them, but they kept struggling endlessly. Du Changdi, former Anhui Provincial Investment Group chairman of the board and declared expulsed from the party and the office on September 8, “forged evidence, colluded with others to fabricate a story, and resisted organizational investigation.

有人执迷不悟，组织已经发现了他们的问题，伸手想拉他们一把，他们却还挣扎不休。9月8日被宣布双开的安徽省投资集团原董事长杜长棣，“伪造证据，与他人串供，对抗组织审查”。

Some people chose to flee abroad. On September 7, Heilongjiang Provincial Supervisory Commission announced that Jixi city‘s former deputy mayor Li Chuanliang was suspected of embezzling a large amount of public capital¹⁾. accepting bribes, and accumulating money from questionable business over a long period. To avoid investigation, he fled abroad, and diverted some of the stolen funding abroad.²⁾

还有个别人，选择了外逃。9月7日，黑龙江省纪委监委发布消息，黑龙江省鸡西市原副市长李传良涉嫌贪污巨额国有资金、收受他人贿赂、长期搞钱色交易，为了躲避调查，逃至境外，并向境外转移部分涉案赃款。

But there are more party cadres who choose a different path: promptly braking and turning their heads to seek the organization’s help, taking the initiative to surrender.

不过，有更多党员干部，选择了另一条路：及时刹车，回头寻求组织的帮助，主动投案。

Recently, among those who actively surrendered, there were high-ranking party cadres – Qinghai Province deputy governor Wen Guodong, staff with ordinary public posts at Henan Province, Xinyang No. 1 Hospital’s payment counter. There were cadres who had been retired for five years like Chen Xiaohua, Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture former consultative conference deputy chairman Chen Xiaohua, Changchun Municipal People’s Congress standing committee deputy director Shi Changyou, and Handan municipal party secretary Gao Hongzhi …

最近主动投案的人当中，有党的高级领导干部——青海省副省长文国栋；有普通的公职人员——河南信阳一医院收费室的工作人员；有退休五年的老干部——云南省文山州政协原副主席陈晓华；还有长春市人大常委会副主任史长友、邯郸市委书记高宏志……

Secretly returning the money, resisting the organization, fleeing abroad with the money, actively turning oneself in – what is the correct way out?

悄悄退钱，对抗组织，携款外逃，或者主动投案……到底哪条路，才是正确的出路？

Let’s take a look at the quiet return of the money. If the money has been returned before the opening of a case, everything is fine?

先来看悄悄退钱的。案发前把钱退给行贿人，就万事大吉了？

According to the law, when there is the subjective intention to take a bribe, and the office is used to accept others’ property, and this is for the benefit sought by the others, the power for money exchange has been completed, and so is the crime of taking bribes. What’s more, many cadres, when returning the money, their main concern is to conceal the fact that they took bribes. There has been no sincere regret at all.

根据法律规定，主观上有受贿故意，在客观上利用职务上的便利收受了他人财物，并且是为他人谋取利益，权钱交易已经达成，受贿罪就既遂了。何况很多干部案发前退钱，心中主要是想掩盖受贿事实，根本不是真心悔过。

When people enter the stage of investigation and they still resist the organization, adding one mistake to the other, adding another violation of political discipline to their record, what is awaiting them will be even more serious consequences.

而那些进入审查调查阶段还在对抗组织的人，错上加错，给自己徒增一条违反政治纪律的情形，等待他们的将是更加严重的后果。

To flee with the money is even more of an impasse.

携款外逃，那就更是绝路一条。

China has lots of practical experience in tracking and recovering stolen goods internationally, with more and more mature mechanisms, and the key: “what escapes must be pursued, what’s pursued must be pursued to the last”. No matter who, those who fled to the end of the earth³⁾ won’t get away. They will not only be brought back, but the money must be reclaimed, too. From 2014 to June 2020, China got back 7,831 people from 120 countries, and 19.65 billion Yuan. China initially built an anti-corruption law enforcement cooperation network that covered all continents and key countries, concluded new extradition treaties with 28 countries, judicial assistance treaties, property restitution and sharing agreements. The National Supervisory Commission has concluded agreements with ten countries’ anti-corruption law enforcement institutions and international organizations …

在国际追逃追赃方面，中国已经有丰富的实战经验，有越来越成熟的机制，关键还有“有逃必追、一追到底”的坚定决心，不管是谁，逃到天涯海角都不会放过，不光把人追回来，还要把钱追回来。2014年至2020年6月，中国共从120多个国家和地区追回外逃人员7831人，追回赃款196.54亿元。中国初步构建起一张覆盖各大洲和重点国家的反腐败执法合作网络，与28个国家新缔结引渡条约、司法协助条约、资产返还与分享协定，国家监委与10个国家反腐败执法机构和国际组织签订了合作协议……

Under such a big net, even if he escapes, chasing and returning him is just a matter of time. Many of those on the interpol list who had escaped, have, one after another, returned and turned themselves in.

在这样一张大网下，就算逃出去，被追回来也只是迟早的事儿。之前那些逃出去的“红通”人员，很多都陆陆续续回国投案了。

So, the only remaining thing is to turn oneself in on ones own initiative. That’s the only correct way out. That has also become the practice of more and more errant party cadres. Why do they make this choice?

那么，只剩下主动投案，是唯一正确的出路，也是现如今越来越多犯错误党员干部的做法。他们为什么要作出这样的选择？

After the supervision law had been issued and implemented, Ai Wenli, the first provincial-level cadre who turned himself in on his own initiative said: “After the 19th National Congress, when one after the other fell of the horse, I had to sort things out. I felt that I couldn’t run, or keep up my wishful thinking. … I’m feeling more and more that this path I’ve taken is the right one, that I must trust the organization …”

监察法颁布实施后首个主动投案的省部级干部艾文礼曾说：“十九大之后，落马的一个接一个，我也把我自己的这些事儿捋了捋，我觉得跑不了，不能再有侥幸心理了。……越来越感到我这条路走的是对的，要相信组织……”

“Trust the organization”, these are the true feelings of many surrenderers. To turn oneself in on one’s own initiative spells trust in the party organization, to submit the issue to the party on one’s own initiative is of political significance. Party members and cadres suspected of a lack of discipline and breaking the law or committing crimes in office will be leniently dealt with in accordance with the regulations, discipline, and the law.

“相信组织”，是很多主动投案者说过的心里话。主动投案，选择的是相信党组织，主动向党组织交代问题，这其中是有政治内涵的。对涉嫌违纪、职务违法、职务犯罪的党员干部和公职人员，如果主动投案，将依规依纪依法从宽处理。

In July this year, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission announced the issue of former Hebei Provincial party committee standing committee member and deputy provincial governor Zhang He having violated discipline and the law. He seriously violated party and organizational discipline. Violating discipline also constituted breaking the law on duty. This was of a serious nature with bad effects and something to be dealt with severely. But considering that that he submitted his offenses against discipline and the law voluntarily, issues which had not been known by the organization, and handed over all the illegal income, showing a rather good attitude of acknowledging his mistakes and regretting them, the organization decided to deal with him leniently, in accordance with the principle of “punishing past things to prevent them from happening again”, punished him by expelling him from the party and [This appears to be something related to Zhang He’s pension rights].

今年7月，中央纪委国家监委公布了河北省原省委常委、副省长张和的违纪违法问题。他严重违反党的组织纪律、廉洁纪律并构成职务违法，性质严重，影响恶劣，应予严肃处理。但考虑到他主动交代组织未掌握的违纪违法问题，上交全部违纪违法所得，认错悔错态度较好，按照“惩前毖后、治病救人”的原则，组织决定对他从宽处理，给予开除党籍处分，按四级调研员确定退休待遇。

In August, Yao Yinqi, a state employee suspected of crimes on duty, was the first case to be extradited by a EU member state⁴⁾. He was sentenced by a first-instance court. Because Yao Yingqi actively cooperated in the extradition procedures, truthfully submitted the case as it was and actively and restituted both the stolen value plus interests, he was given a reduced prison sentence of three years and fined 3 mn RMB.

8月，我国首次从欧盟成员国引渡回来的涉嫌职务犯罪的国家工作人员姚锦旗，受到了一审判决。由于姚锦旗在引渡过程中积极配合，如实交代案件事实，并主动退缴全部赃款及其孳息，依法被减轻处罚，判处有期徒刑六年，并处罚金人民币三百万元。

Honest-practice and anti-corruption campaigns aren’t about wanting to cull all the errant party cadres, but to help them to admit their mistakes and to repent. The goal of these campaigns is to achieve the punishment of the past while curing the sickness to save the patient. Previous lessons have shown time and again that getaways and concealment doesn’t make the past go away, so why not face up to one’s own issues and accept the organization’s remedies?

正风肃纪反腐，不是要把犯错的党员干部都一棒子打死，而是要帮助他们认错悔悟，实现惩前毖后、治病救人的目的。前车之鉴已经反反复复地证明，逃来逃去、藏来藏去还是躲不过去，为什么不正视自己的问题，接受组织挽救呢？

There is reason to believe that under high-pressure awe, inspiring policies and more and more model cases, even more errant party cadres will take this road of turning themselves in voluntarily.

相信在高压震慑、政策感召和越来越多的案例示范下，还会有更多犯错的党员干部走上主动投案这条路。

To remain updated about next week’s major events, see how the next chapter evolves. (Zi Buke)

欲知下周大事，且听下回分解。（子不歇）

Column editor: Gu Wanquan. Text editor: Song Hui. Title picture: Shangguan. Picture service: Zhu Li.

栏目主编：顾万全 文字编辑：宋慧 题图来源：上观图编 图片编辑：朱瓅

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Notes

¹⁾ Literally: state-owned capital. Not sure if this reflects the linked definition of “public-owned capital”.
²⁾ The Epoch Times has a different version of the story.
³⁾ In Chinese words: to Cape Haijiao in Sanya (as if the South China Sea hadn’t been full of Chinese islands since ancient times)
⁴⁾ This probably refers to Bulgaria, where Yao was reportedly arrested in October 2018, and extradited to China about a month (and a few days) later.

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Related

Shanghai police chief investigated, SCMP, Aug 18, 2020
How the fly roared back, Jan 25, 2013
Three Self-Control, April 19, 2009

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Radio Taiwan International suspends 1098 kHz Transmissions for ~ 2 Months

Radio Taiwan International‘s Mandarin programs on the usual 1098 kHz frequency from 21:00 to 01:05 Taipei time (13:00 – 17:05 UTC) will be suspended, because of antenna maintenance work from September 21 to November 20.

据RTI消息，由於中央廣播電臺自9月21日至11月20日止進行天線更新維護工程，原1098千赫頻率21:00~01:05播出之「國語」節目暫停播出。

Radio Taiwan International QSL, 2015

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Related tag:

Radio Taiwan International

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Chinese Ministry of Defense Spokesman: “China’s Friends can be found all over the World”

The following is a reaction by China’s ministry of defense spokesman Ren Guoqiang to what is said to be an article by US secretary of defense Mark Esper.

News like Ren’s statement don’t usually feature prominently in Chinese television news, but are the kind of stuff that may excite some online readers in China. A video without verbal footage, but a dramatic musical soundtrack, is also shared on Weibo.

Original	My translation	CCTV English
中新网9月6日电 据国防部新闻局官方微信消息，美国国防部长埃斯珀近日发表题为《美国防部已做好准备应对中国》的署名文章称，美需建设一支与中国全面抗衡的军事力量。对此，国防部新闻发言人任国强表示，这篇文章通篇充斥冷战思维与意识形态偏见，毫无根据地歪曲中国人民解放军，渲染所谓“中国军事威胁”，完全是无稽之谈。	China News Service, Sept 6. According to the ministry of defense’s official WeChat channel, US secretary of defense Esper recently published a signed article titled “US Department of Defense prepared for reacting to China”, saying that America needed to build a military force able to comprehensively contend with China. Concerning this, Ministry of Defense spokesman Ren Guoqiang said that the article was full of cold-war mentality and ideological prejudice, distorted the PLA without the slightest foundation, and exaggerated the so-called “China military threat”, which was complete nonsense.	blank
有记者问：美国国防部长埃斯珀近日发表题为《美国防部已做好准备应对中国》的署名文章称，中国军队并非为国家和宪法服务，而是为中国共产党效力；为应对中国“军事威胁”，美需建设一支与中国全面抗衡的军事力量；中国军队对地区邻国采取咄咄逼人的行动，美国将加强与印太地区盟国和伙伴国的关系。中方对此作何评论？	Reporter’s question: US secretary of defense Esper recently published a signed article titled “US Department of Defense prepared for reacting to China”, saying that China’s military really doesn’t serve the country and the constitution, but effectively serves the Chinese Communist Party. To respond to China’s “military threat”, America needed to build a military force able to comprehensively contend with China. China’s military took aggressive action against neighboring countries, and America would strengthen relations with allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region. What is China’s comment on this?	blank
任国强表示，这篇文章通篇充斥冷战思维与意识形态偏见，毫无根据地歪曲中国人民解放军，渲染所谓“中国军事威胁”，完全是无稽之谈。该文如果不是出于对客观事实的政治偏见，最起码也是对基本常识的无知。中方对此表示坚决反对。	Ministry of Defense spokesman Ren Guoqiang said that the article was full of cold-war mentality and ideological prejudice, distorted the PLA without the slightest foundation, and exaggerated the so-called “China military threat”, which was complete nonsense. Said article was based on a policy of prejudice and lack of objectiveness and facts, and ignorant of the very fundamentals. China resolutely opposed this.	Ren Guoqiang, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defense, Sunday slammed U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper’s article against the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), asserting that any attempt to cut the flesh-and-blood ties between the Chinese army and the people is doomed to fail.
任国强指出，《中华人民共和国宪法》明确规定：社会主义制度是中华人民共和国的根本制度；中国共产党领导是中国特色社会主义最本质的特征；中华人民共和国的武装力量属于人民。中国共产党的宗旨是全心全意为人民服务，作为中国共产党缔造和领导的武装力量，中国人民解放军的宗旨也始终是全心全意为人民服务。中国人民都知道，中国人民解放军是“人民子弟兵”，人民军队为实现民族独立、人民解放作出巨大牺牲，在经济建设、应对重大自然灾害、保卫人民生命财产安全中作出突出贡献。事实证明，任何割裂中国军队和中国人民血肉联系的图谋注定是失败的。	Ren Guoqiang said that the “People’s Republic of China’s Constitution” clearly stipulated that the socialist system was the PRC’s fundamental system, that the Communist Party of China’s leadership was the most essential characteristic of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and that the PRC’s armed force belonged to the people. The Chinese Communist Party’s objective was to serve the people with heart and soul, and as the armed forces created and led by the Chinese Communist Party, the PLA’s objective also was to serve the people with heart and soul. The Chinese people all knew that the PLA was the “force of the people’s younger generation”, that the people’s troops, to achieve national independence, [the PLA] had made huge sacrifices, outstanding economic contributions, responded to major natural disasters, and outstanding contributions to safeguarding the people’s lives and property. Facts had proven that any conspiracy to cut apart the Chinese troops’ and Chinese people’s ties of flesh and blood were doomed to fail.	The article had distorted the PLA’s image without any basis to play up the so-called Chinese military threat, Ren told reporters. His remarks came after Esper’s article titled “The Pentagon Is Prepared for China,” wherein he claimed that “China’s military does not serve the country or the constitution.” Ren described the allegations as totally groundless and full of Cold-War mentality and ideological bias.
任国强强调，《中华人民共和国宪法》还明确规定：中国坚持走和平发展道路，坚持互利共赢开放战略，发展同各国的外交关系和经济、文化交流，推动构建人类命运共同体。新中国成立70年来，从未主动挑起过一场战争，从未侵占过别人的一寸土地。中国军力的增长完全是世界和平力量的增长。中国军队积极参加联合国维和、亚丁湾护航、人道主义救援等行动，努力为世界提供更多的公共安全产品。中国和中国军队维护世界和平与繁荣的积极贡献，赢得了国际社会广泛赞誉，中国的朋友遍天下。美方渲染地区紧张局势、挑拨中国与地区国家关系，这种图谋注定是痴心妄想。	Guo Renqiang also emphasized that the “People’s Republic of China’s Constitution” clearly stipulated that China upheld the path of peaceful development, a strategy of mutual benefit and openness, the development of diplomatic, economic and cultural exchanges with all countries, and the promotion of the construction of human destiny community*). During all the 70 years since its founding, New China had never provoked a war, and never invaded and occupied any length of other countries’ territory. The growth of China’s military power was the growth of global power of peace. The Chinese military actively took part in UN peacekeeping, convoying in the Gulf of Aden, humanitarian rescue and other operations, so as to provide more public security goods to the world. China’s and China military’s contributions to protecting global peace and prosperity have earned it broad international recognition. China’s friends can be found all over the world. America exaggerates regional tensions and incites disharmony in relations between China and countries in the region. This conspiracy is delusional. Editor: Liu Pai	The Communist Party of China (CPC) and the PLA share the same mission of serving the people wholeheartedly as mentioned in China’s Constitution, Ren said. The country’s military is deeply rooted in the people and have made great contributions to achieving national independence as well as liberation of the people in terms of economic construction, disaster relief and protecting people’s life and property, the spokesperson added.
blank		The growth of China’s military power should be regarded as the empowerment of world peace as the Chinese Constitution rules that China pursues the path of peaceful development, Ren said, adding that the Chinese military has been actively participating in international peacekeeping activities.
blank		The U.S. attempts to alienate China from other countries would never succeed as China’s efforts in maintaining world peace have been widely recognized by the international community, Ren noted.
blank		He added that since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the PLA has also been fulfilling its responsibility as the military of a major country, actively participating in international anti-COVID-19 cooperation.
blank		The Chinese military will continue to make contributions to the world’s safety, peace, prosperity and inclusiveness, the spokesperson stressed.

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Notes

^*) The usual English-language handle in sinicized English would be community with a shared destiny for mankind, or community of common destiny.

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Related

Asian NATO looming, Oct 15, 2010

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China-Germany Friendship Association: “A Rise in unpredictable Factors”

If “people-to-people” organizations are crucial for Beijing’s diplomacy (it didn’t look like that in recent years), former Chinese ambassador to Germany, Shi Mingde, could be facing a rather challenging partial-retirement duty as the new head of the “China-Germany Friendship Association”. As far as the quotes in the following report provide clues, Shi seems to strike a mainly positive note on Sino-German relations, but less so than the overall “Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries'” president Lin Songtian, once “China’s most outspoken ambassador in Africa”.

This was in early August, before foreign minister Wang Yi started his European tour, but Shi, even if using the lot of sugarcoating that we had been used to prior to Xi Jinping‘s Major-Country Diplomacy with Chinese Characteristics, also alluded to some deficits in German-Chinese relations.

The following is a translation of the report on the China-Germany Friendship Association’s conference of August 6 local time. Links added during translation.

china.com.cn (China Net, 中国网) is an online news portal under the Chinese state council’s (i. e. government’s) administration.

China Net photo, click main link underneath for article

Main Link:
Former Chinese ambassador to Germany, Shi Mingde, elected chairman of China-Germany Friendship Association.

China Net, August 7 news (reporter Wang Ran). On August 6, the China-Germany Friendship Association conference was held in Beijing. Senior diplomat and former ambassador to Germany Shi Mingde was elected as the China-Germany Friendship Association’s new president. The conference also elected a deputy president and a secretary-general, passed a sixty-names’ directorate list and a China-Germany Friendship Association statute.

中国网8月日讯 （记者 王冉）8月6日，中国德国友好协会（以下简称：中德友协）换届大会在京举行。中国资深外交官、前驻德大使史明德当选新一届中德友协会长。大会还选出副会长、秘书长，通过了新一届理事60人名单和中德友协章程。

Ambassador Shi Mingde said in his address that ever since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Germany 48 years ago, the two countries’ relations of friendly cooperation had reached unprecedented development. The two sides’ joint interests had always outweighed division and contradictions. The two countries’ political relations were well, and economic and trade cooperation had provided substantial mutually beneficial results. But at the same time, German public opinion about China hadn’t seen fundamental improvement, and the foundations of public opinion in the two countries needed further consolidation (两国民意基础有待进一步夯实). German chancellor Angela Merkel would end her political career next year, after 16 years in office. This could lead to a rise in unpredictable factors.

史明德大使在致辞中称，中德建交48年来，两国友好合作关系得到前所未有的发展，双方共同利益始终大于分歧和矛盾。两国政治关系良好，经贸互利合作成果丰硕。但与此同时，德国对华舆论环境没有根本改善，两国民意基础有待进一步夯实。明年德国总理默克尔将结束执政16年的政治生涯，中德关系未来的不可预测因素可能上升。

Shi Mingde said that the China-Germany Friendship Association, in its coming years, would play a leading role in people-to-people [or non-governmental] exchanges with Germany and create a great platform for people-to-people exchange with Germany. [It would] speak out actively and let more German masses understand a real and objective China. It would promote Sino-German regional exchanges and serve regional economic development. He hoped that the China-German Friendship Association could, under the guidance and with the support of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, continuously promote the friendly exchange and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries’ peoples, and the rise of Sino-German friendly cooperation to the next level.

史明德表示，新一届中德友协要在对德民间交往中发挥引领作用，打造对德民间交流大平台；积极对外发声，让更多德国民众了解一个真实、客观的中国；促进中德地方交流，服务地方经济发展。他希望中德友协能在中国人民对外友好协会的指导和支持下，不断推进两国民间友好交流与互利合作，促进中德友好合作更上一层楼。

Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries’ president Lin Songtian said at the conference that China and Germany were both firm supporters of globalization and multilateralism, with common interests and similar positions concerning the protection of world peace and justice. Currently, there were 99 partnerships between Chinese and German provinces, federal states and cities, and 1.5 million visits in either direction per year. He believed that under the new president’s leadership, the China-German Friendship Association would attract broader masses to participation and exchange, promote the mutual understanding between the two countries’ peoples, learning from each other and setting examples for each other, promote closer attachment and connectedness, to contribute more people-to-people wisdom and strengths to the deepening of the Sino-German comprehensive [『 全方位』, not just『全面』 ] strategic partnership.

中国人民对外友好协会会长林松添在换届大会上表示，中德都是全球化和多边主义的坚定支持者，在维护世界和平与正义、促进全球合作与发展繁荣等方面拥有广泛的共同利益和相近立场。目前，中德友好省州和城市有99对，每年有150余万人次互访。他相信，中德友协在新任会长领导下能吸引两国更广泛民众参与交流，促进两国人民相互了解、互学互鉴，实现民相亲、心相通，为深化中德全方位战略伙伴关系贡献更多民间智慧和力量，更好造福两国人民。

After the conference, Shi Mingde gave China Net an interview. He said that on July 1, Germany had taken the European Union’s rotating chairmanship for the current half-year term. This year was a critical period for Sino-European relations, and as the chairing country of the EU, Germany picked up an important role. “I hope for the EU’s and Germany’s joint efforts, to send a positive signal of support for multilateralism and against unilateralism, [a positive signal] of cooperation and mutual profits.”

史明德在会后就中德双边关系接受了中国网采访。他说，7月1日，德国接任欧盟轮值主席国，开启为期半年的任期。今年是中欧关系的关键时期，作为欧盟轮值主席国的德国起着至关重要的作用。“我希望与欧盟和德国一起共同努力，向世界发出坚持多边主义，反对单边主义，合作共赢的积极信号。”

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