Extracts.
Tuesday, December 26, 2000, updated at 13:21(GMT+8)
China to Build 18,000 km West Region Rail Network in
5 Years
During the "10th Five-year Plan" period, China will
invest nearly 100 billion yuan in railway
construction in China's west regions and the railway
network in these areas will be extended from the
current 16,000 km to 18,000 km by 2005, said Sun
Yongfu, vice-minister of Railways, at the National
Railway Working Conference concluded in Beijing on
December 24.
Sun pointed out that since the "Eighth Five-year
Plan", though rapid development has been made to the
railway construction in the west region, the railway
network in these areas is still small, technological
level is low, the number of lines connected to the
eastern regions and to other parts of the world is
insufficient.
During the "10th Five-year Plan" period, China will
invest about 100 billion yuan in the construction of
28 railways in the west area, accounting for 40
percent of the total investment in large and
medium-sized capital construction projects
nationwide. A total of 2,600-km-long new railways
including 1,300-km-long double-track railways and
500-km-long electrified railways will be hopefully
completed by 2005 and the railway network in China's
west will be expanded to 18,000 km.
It's reported that the Ministry of Railways will
focus on the following points during the "10th
Five-year Plan" period, first, the construction of
passageways linking the west with the east of China,
including the double-track railways of Baoji-Lanzhou
and Zhuzhou-Liupanshui, the Nanjing-Xi'an Railway and
the Suining-Chongqing-Huaihua Railway; second, the
construction of railway lines in the west region
including Neijiang-Kunming Railway, the Shenmu-Yan'an
Railway and the Qinghai-Tibet Railway. In addition,
the reconstruction to existing railways will also be
strengthened.
By PD Online Staff Deng Gang
****
Monday, December 25, 2000, updated at 20:18(GMT+8)
China, Viet Nam Sign Joint Statement for Future
Cooperation
China and Viet Nam issued a joint statement in
Beijing Monday, December 25. The following is the
full text of the statement:
Joint Statement on All-round Cooperation in the New
Century Between the People's Republic of China and
the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam
The People's Republic of China and the Socialist
Republic of Viet Nam (hereafter referred to as the
"two sides") are socialist neighbors with
long-standing traditional friendly relations. since
the establishment of diplomatic ties 50 years ago,
the relations between China and Viet Nam have
continued to grow and develop.
Since the normalization of relations in 1991 and on
the basis of the principles enshrined in the Joint
Communiques and Joint Statement issued during the
meetings of high-level leaders in 1991, 1992, 1994,
1995 and 1999 respectively, the traditional friendly
relations of mutual trust, equality and mutual
benefit between the two counties have developed
rapidly in all fields and there have been frequent
exchanges between departments at all levels.
In February 1999, the General Secretaries of the two
Parties set the principle guiding the development of
this bilateral relationship in the 21st century,
namely, "long-term stability, orientation towards the
future, good-neighborliness and friendship and
all-round cooperation." This is in the fundamental
interests of the two peoples and will serve regional
and world peace, stability and development.
The two sides reiterate that they will continue to
promote the all-round development of their
state-to-state relationship in compliance with the
purposes and principles of the UN Charter, the Five
Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and the
universally acknowledged norms governing
international relations. The Communist Party of China
and the Communist Party of Viet Nam will continue to
develop their friendly relations and cooperation on
the basis of independence, complete equality, mutual
respect and non-interference in each other's internal
affairs.
In order to implement the guiding principle
effectively and bring China-Viet Nam relations to a
new stage of development in the 21st century, the two
sides agree to boost and expand cooperation in the
following areas:
I. To maintain frequent high-level meetings so as to
give a fresh impetus to the development of the
bilateral relations; to further enhance the friendly
contacts and multi-form exchanges and cooperation
between departments, people's organizations and
various localities of the two countries.
II. To step up the promotion of and education in the
tradition of friendship among the young people of the
two countries; to carry out friendly exchanges and
contacts between the youth, with a view to
contributing to deeper friendship and mutual trust
between the two peoples and ensuring that there will
be qualified successors to carry on the cause of
friendship, mutual trust and cooperation between the
two peoples and that the cause will develop in depth.
III. To continue to strengthen and expand bilateral
cooperation in such areas as the economy and trade
and science and technology in accordance with the
principles of equality and mutual benefit, stress on
results, sharing each other's strengths, multi-forms
and common development. To this end, the two sides
agree to work together in the following aspects.
1. to give full play to the role of the
Inter-governmental Commission on Economic Cooperation
and Trade in strengthening the economic relations,
trade and investment cooperation between the two
countries. to adopt such forms as giving further play
to the role of big companies as the main channel,
increasing bulk commodities trade, encouraging and
supporting the enterprises of the two countries in
cooperation on major projects in order to expand the
bilateral economic relations, trade and investment.
To foster a sound market environment and constantly
tap the potentials to ensure sustained and steady
increase in two-way trade. To maintain stable
investment policies and create favorable conditions
of mutual investment by the enterprises of the two
countries; and to actively implement the Border Trade
Agreement, strengthen coordination and management and
standardize border trade.
2. To give play to the role of macro guidance and
coordination of the Inter-governmental Commission on
Science and Technology Cooperation to facilitate
exchanges and cooperation in the areas of science and
technology. To guide and encourage the relevant
governmental departments, institutions of scientific
research, universities and colleges, and enterprises
in the science and technology sector to carry out
extensive scientific-technological cooperation in the
fields of information, biology and agriculture,
meteorology, oceanology, environmental protection,
peaceful use of nuclear power and other areas of
shared interest.
3. To make efforts to facilitate mutually beneficial
cooperation in agriculture, forestry and fishing, and
encourage the relevant enterprises and departments to
strengthen exchanges and cooperation in such fields
as the crops, domestic animals and poultry of fine
breeds, processing of agriculture and forestry
products, agricultural machine-building, offshore
fishing, and aquatic culture and give them support in
such work.
4. To step up exchanges and cooperation in the fiscal
and financial fields and in the macro control of the
economy.
5. To enhance cooperation in communication and
transportation, jointly develop international railway
passenger-cargo through transport between the two
countries and extend international railway transport
connection to third countries, with a view to
promoting people-to-people and commodity exchanges.
6. To encourage greater exchanges and cooperation
between telecommunications agencies of the two
countries in the modernization of telecom networks,
applied new technology and opening up new services,
etc.
7. To expand cooperation in tourism and encourage
tourism agencies of the two countries to share
experience and boost cooperation in management,
promotion, marketing and personnel training, and
provide facilities for citizens of the two countries
and third countries in traveling in the two
countries.
8. To intensify information sharing and cooperation
in environmental protection, prevention and relief of
disasters, meteorology and hydrology and work
together in the development of the Mekong River area.
9. To broaden cooperation and share experience in the
planning, construction, management and development of
cities and personnel training.
IV. To continue to strengthen bilateral cooperation
and coordination at the UN, ARF, East Asia
Cooperation, APEC, ASEM and other international and
regional multilateral fronts and promote the
solidarity and cooperation of the developing
countries. To continue to work for the establishment
of a just and rational new international political
and economic order and make new contributions to the
maintenance of peace, stability and development in
the region and the world at large.
The two sides appreciate the positive role played by
ASEAN for regional stability and development and
reiterate that they will continue to work for the
strengthening of the partnership of mutual trust and
good neighborliness between China and ASEAN countries
and make positive efforts for the sustained stability
and prosperity of Asia, and East Asia in particular.
To continue to consolidate the annual consultation
mechanism between senior foreign affairs officials of
the two countries to exchange views on bilateral
relations and regional and international issues of
common interest.
V. To carry out multi-level military exchanges in
various fields to enhance mutual understanding and
mutual trust, build closer relations between the
national defense organs and the armed forces between
the two countries, and expand exchange and
cooperation in the security field.
VI. To enhance exchanges and cooperation between the
cultural, sports and media circles of the two
countries, such as encouraging more exchanges of
visits and experiences and personnel training.
VII. To expand cooperation in education, including
exchanges of students and teachers, encouraging and
supporting closer direct cooperation between
universities, educational departments and research
institutes of the two sides.
VIII. To strengthen cooperation in preventing and
combating organized transnational crimes and the
exchanges and cooperation between the courts,
procuratorates, public security authorities, judicial
and administrative organs of the two sides. To
enhance exchange of experience between the discipline
inspection and supervisory authorities of the two
countries in combating corruption and promoting clean
government.
IX. The two sides agree that the Land Boundary Treaty
Between the People's Republic of China and the
Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, the Agreement Between
the People's Republic of China and the Socialist
Republic of Viet Nam on the Delimitation of the Beibu
Bay Territorial Sea, the Exclusive Economic Zone and
Continental Shelves and the Agreement Between the
Government of the People's Republic of China and the
Government of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on
Fishing Cooperation in the Beibu Bay that the two
sides have signed are of profound historic
significance. The signing of these documents will
help bring about further development of the relations
of good neighborliness and friendship and all-round
cooperation between the two countries in the 21st
century. The two sides undertake to implement in real
earnest these agreements and cooperate with each
other effectively in building the border between them
into a peaceful, friendly and permanently stable one.
The two sides agree to maintain the existing
negotiation mechanism on the marine issue and to
persist in seeking a fundamental and everlasting
solution acceptable to both sides through peaceful
negotiations. Pending the solution, the two sides
will, in a spirit of tackling easier issues before
difficult ones, actively explore the possibilities
and measures for conducting marine cooperation in
ocean environment protection, meteorology, hydrology,
disaster prevention and alleviation. At the same
time, they will not take actions to complicate or
aggravate disputes. Nor will they resort to force or
threat of force. They will consult each other in time
in case of disputes and adopt a cool and constructive
attitude to handle them properly. They will not allow
disputes to impede the normal development of their
relations.
X. The two sides reaffirm their consensus reached in
the China- Vietnam Joint Communiques signed on 10
November 1991, 22 November 1994 and 2 December 1995
respectively and the China-Vietnam Joint Statement
signed on 27 February 1999 that Viet Nam restates its
one-China policy and that Viet Nam recognizes that
there is but one China in the world, that the
Government of the People's Republic of China is the
sole legal government representing the whole of China
and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese
territory. Viet Nam will continue to uphold the
one-China policy and will conduct only unofficial
economic exchanges and trade with Taiwan and will
never develop any official relationship with Taiwan.
China understands and appreciates the above position
of Viet Nam, and it reiterates that the Taiwan
question is entirely an internal affair of China and
that China is firmly opposed to the establishment of
any official relations in any form or any exchanges
of an official nature with Taiwan by countries having
diplomatic relations with China.
Done in duplicate in Beijing on 25 December 2000 in
the Chinese and Vietnamese languages, both texts
being equally authentic.
(Signed) Tang Jiaxuan (Signed) Nguyen Dy Nien
Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign
Affairs
****
Monday, December 25, 2000, updated at 19:03(GMT+8)
Follow-up Committee for China-African Cooperation
Forum Established
China established Monday a follow-up action committee
for the China-African Cooperation Forum to implement
decisions made at a ministerial-level meeting between
Chinese and African governments last October.
Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and Minister of
Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) Shi
Guangsheng as the two honorary chairmen, the
follow-up action committee is co-chaired by
Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Ji Peiding and
MOFTEC Vice-Minister Sun Guangxiang.
Members of the committee include officials from 19
government departments relevant with African
cooperation affairs. The committee is in charge of
the coordination among relevant departments to
implement the decisions made at the forum as well as
liaison work with African nations.
****
Monday, December 25, 2000, updated at 15:46(GMT+8)
China Lowers Telecom Fees
China announced a major plan to significantly lower
telecom fees and costs Monday, December 25.
The State Development Planning Commission, the
Ministry of Information Industry (MII) and the
Ministry of Finance jointly issued the readjustment
plan this morning.
The readjustment covers all telecom businesses except
mobile phones services.
Telecom charges, apart from local phone calls, are
lowered by a big margin.
Charges for international phone calls, leased
circuits and Internet surfing are cut by more than 50
percent.
Charges for domestic long-distance calls are changed
to 0.07 yuan per six seconds from previous pricing
standard which charges differently according to
different distances based on calculation by minute.
International phone calls are also lowered to 0.80
yuan per six seconds and calls to the Hong Kong,
Macao and Taiwan districts are unified to 0.20 yuan
per six seconds.
The telephone fees in rural areas will be lowered by
a large margin.
Other readjustment items include charges for linking
to Internet, IP telephone, and paging.
An official with the MII said that the new pricing
standard will be applied as of January 1, 2001. But
he added that the deadline is the March 1, 2001,
considering the complexity of the readjustment.
China's telecommunications industry posted a hefty
growth rate of more than 30 percent in 1999, much
higher than the country's national growth rate.
However, telecom charges remained high due to the
virtual long- term monopoly of the sector.
Thanks to the expansion of the telecom network and
the introduction of new technologies, telecom
authorities have readjusted charges on several
occasions.
In December, 1996, for example, phone installation
fees and international long-distance call charges
were reduced, and the charges for domestic
long-distance calls were further simplified.
However, it is acknowledged that current telephone
charges are still high compared with developed
countries.
For example, a phone call from Beijing to New York
costs 18.4 yuan (2.2 U.S. dollars) per minute, about
3 times the charge to make the same call from New
York to Beijing.
Other aspects such as high charges for telecom lines
rental and long distantance calls to Hong Kong and
Taiwan, and low costs for inner city calls still
stand in the way of further expansion of the telecom
market.
MII and other relevant departments said earlier this
year that they will speed up reforms on the data
telecom fees and draw up a more scientific payment
policy.
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