Remarks by Reta Jo Lewis

Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs

at 2012 China International Friendship Cities Conference

Chengdu, China

September 12, 2012

美国国务院全球政府间事务特别代表雷塔•乔•刘易斯在中国国际友好城市会议上的讲话

中国成都

2012年9月12日

　　Thank you for that kind introduction.

　　谢谢您的热情介绍。

　　Good morning distinguished Madam Li and guests. I would like to express my appreciation to the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the Chengdu Municipal government for hosting us today at the 2012 China International Friendship Cities Conference.

　　尊敬的李女士及各位来宾，你们好。我谨在此感谢中国人民对外友好协会和成都市政府今天在这里主办2012年中国国际友好城市会议。

　　Let me extend a special recognition to Mary Kane, president and CEO of Sister Cities International, and Laurel Pressing, mayor of Urbana, Illinois. We are delighted that you are here with us today.

　　我要特别感谢国际姐妹城市协会的会长兼首席执行官玛丽·凯恩和伊利诺伊州厄巴纳市市长劳雷尔·普莱星。你们能够参加今天的会议，我们感到十分高兴。

　　I would like to take a moment to express my condolences to the people of Yunnan and Guizhou provinces who experienced a series of earthquakes last Friday. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time.

　　我希望占用一点时间向上个星期五经历了一连串地震的云南和贵州两省的人民表示慰唁。在这个困难的时刻，我们向你们寄送我们的哀思，并且为你们祈祷。

　　When we speak about our countries, it is easy to fall into the habit of talking about our capital cities. When we say that “Beijing” and “Washington, DC” are working together, we typically mean the countries as a whole.

　　当我们讲到我们的国家时，常常会以我们的首都为代表。当我们说“北京”和“华盛顿”相互协作时，我们通常指的是两个国家。

　　We all know, however, that the work of nations also takes place at the subnational level – the states, the provinces, and the cities.

　　但是，众所周知，国家所做的工作也有地方上的参与——州/省和城市。

　　As the Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs, I am proud to be here to say that both “Washington, DC” and America’s subnational governments are interested in fostering better relations with China’s provinces and cities.

　　作为美国国务院全球政府间事务特别代表，今天我可以在这里自豪地说，“华盛顿”和美国的地方政府都希望和中国的省市建立更好的关系。

　　One of the real highlights for me during my two and a half years as Special Representative has been the development of the U.S.-China subnational initiative. Secretary Clinton and Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) supporting U.S.-China subnational cooperation on January 19, 2011.

　　在我担任特别代表的两年半时间里，对我来说最重要的事情之一就是制定了美中两国基层交流行动计划。克林顿国务卿和杨洁篪外长在2011年1月19日签署了支持美中基层合作的《谅解备忘录》。

　　Since that time, we have witnessed a historic level of engagement at the subnational level, including dialogues and exchanges like the U.S.-China Governors Forum and this event that, that provide many opportunities to strengthen bilateral ties and build mutual understanding.

　　从那时起，我们见证了有史以来规模最大的基层交往，包括各类对话和交流，美中州长/省长论坛以及本次活动，这些活动为加强双边关系和增进相互理解提供了机会。

　　For example, Vice President Xi Jinping visited the United States in February. Vice President Xi traveled to Los Angeles with Vice President Biden after meeting President Obama at the White House. Vice President Xi’s visit coincided with an explosion of city-to-city and state-to-province ties, a surge in U.S. local governments’ setting up trade offices in China and increasing demand for foreign investment.

　　例如，习近平副主席在2月访问了美国。在前往白宫与欧巴马总统举行会晤之后，习副主席在拜登副总统陪同下前往洛杉矶。在习副主席访问前后，两国州/省和城市之间的交流活动倍增，更多美国地方政府在中国设立贸易办事处，对外国投资的需求也在增大。

　　At present, there are over 200 sister-city and sister-state relationships between the United States and China, and more than 30 state trade offices working in China.

　　现在，美中之间共有200多对姐妹城市和姐妹州，美国有30多个州在中国开设了贸易办事处。

　　U.S.-China ties are clearly richer and more extensive than ever before. Bilateral cooperation and dialogue have moved beyond traditional diplomacy into the fields of economic and commercial engagement and cultural and educational exchanges.

　　显然，与以往任何时候相比，今天的美中关系都更丰富、更广泛。双边合作与对话已经超越了传统的外交领域，经济、商务、文化、教育等领域的交往全面展开。

　　The further we deepen our relationship, the more we need to bring into play the skills and energies of partners beyond our central and federal governments.

　　我们之间的关系越深厚，我们就越需要中央/联邦政府之外的合作伙伴贡献智慧和精力。

　　Citizen diplomacy networks, such as Sister Cities International, play an important role in creating and strengthening partnerships between U.S. and Chinese communities.

　　国际姐妹城市协会之类的公民外交组织在建立和加强美中社区之间的伙伴关系方面起着重要的作用。

　　I would like to offer my congratulations to Sister Cities International and CPAFFC on the MOU they will sign tomorrow formalizing an ongoing partnership to collaborate to create new sister city, sister county, and sister state/province relationships between U.S. and Chinese communities to promote peace, mutual understanding, and prosperity in their respective communities. This agreement will significantly benefit the U.S.-China bilateral relationship.

　　明天，国际姐妹城市协会和中国人民对外友好协会将签署一份《谅解备忘录》，把现有的伙伴关系正规化，共同推动在美中之间建立新的姐妹城市、姐妹县、姐妹州/省，以促进和平、相互理解和繁荣。这项协议将使美中双边关系受益匪浅。

　　I believe that engagement at the local level will continue to offer an exciting and effective method for Americans to discuss issues of mutual concern with Chinese provincial officials.

　　我深信，基层交往将继续为美方提供一种令人振奋的、有效的方式与中国基层政府官员探讨双方共同关心的问题。

　　Our host city, Chengdu, understands the importance of local engagement, counting several international cities as sister-city partners, including Honolulu, Phoenix, and Knoxville in the United States.

　　我们的东道主成都市理解基层交流的重要性，它与多个国际城市结成了姐妹合作关系，其中包括美国的檀香山、凤凰城和诺克斯维尔。

　　I look forward to continued collaboration with our Chinese friends to further enhance existing sister-city relationships and to foster new relationships to facilitate greater understanding between our two great nations.

　　我期待着与我们的中国朋友继续合作，进一步加强现有姐妹城市关系和建立新关系，增进我们两个伟大国家的相互理解。