Honorable Dr. Ismail Serageldin,
Ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure for me to attend the opening ceremony of the Exhibition of Chinese Script co-sponsored by the Chinese Cultural Center and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. I want to thank Dr. Serageldin and the staff of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina for their generous support which made this event possible. I also want to extend my cordial welcome to all distinguished guests present here today.

The exhibition we are inaugurating today is about the Chinese script which is not only one of the oldest written languages in the world but the only surviving hieroglyph still in use today. It helps to record the Chinese history, carry on the Chinese civilization and promote the exchanges between China and foreign nations. By showing the origin and evolution of the Chinese script, this exhibition not only reflects the essence of the Chinese culture from a special perspective, but also reveals the secret of how the Chinese civilization has gone through the mill and advanced with the tides. I believe this exhibition will serve to deepen the understanding of China and the Chinese civilization by the Egyptian people, promote the cultural exchanges between our two countries and enhance friendship between our two peoples.

The friendly exchanges between China and Egypt go back to ancient times, in which Alexandria occupies a unique and important place. As early as 120 BC, the Chinese Emperor Han Wudi sent his envoys to Alexandria, which marked the beginning of over-2000-year-old history of China-Egypt relationship. Therefore, it is by no means coincidental that we are staging a Chinese script exhibition at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, once the Lighthouse of world civilization. It not only reminds us of the great contributions made by China and Egypt to world civilization, but also epitomizes the rich, diverse and vigorous interaction between our two great ancient civilizations in a new era. Today, the Egyptian people are showing an unabated interest in China. Learning Chinese has been all the vogue in Egypt. I am sure the newly inaugurated Chinese Cultural Center will serve as a new bridge linking our two peoples and make its contributions to promoting China-Egypt cultural exchanges.



Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to take this opportunity to inform you that the SARS has been put under effective control in China thanks to the relentless efforts made by the Chinese Government and people. This is by no means an easily fought battle. But we have won through in the end. In the fight against the SARS, the Chinese people were not alone. We received sympathy and support from many Arab countries including Egypt for which we are very grateful. Now with the SARS behind us and normal social and economic life in China being restored, I am confident the exchanges and cooperation between China and Egypt in all fields will be resumed and strengthened. China-Egypt cultural exchanges will have an even brighter future.

Finally, I wish the Exhibition a great success.

Thank you.