China's Prosperity Poses No Threat to Asia-Pacific: Tang

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan Wednesday said that a prosperous and even more open China will be a positive and constructive factor for both Asia-Pacific and the world at large.

China "will never be a threat," Tang said at the annual session of the Eighth ASEAN Regional Forum, which opened earlier Wednesday in Hanoi for discussions on security issues in the region.

For a considerable long time to come, the central task for China is to concentrate its efforts on developing the economy and improving the quality of people's life, said the Chinese foreign minister.

"China needs a surrounding environment of good-neighborliness and friendship and an external world for mutually beneficial cooperation," he added.

China's own stability and development is the biggest contribution to regional peace and security, Tang said.

Tang stressed that China's policy on Asia-Pacific security is committed to the maintenance of peace and stability and the promotion of prosperity and progress in the Asia-Pacific region.

China "advocates a new concept of security with mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination at its core," Tang said.

The Chinese side will, as always, work together with other forum participants to preserve regional peace and stability and promote mutually beneficial cooperation among countries, said the Chinese foreign minister.

(People’s Daily 07/25/2001)