I am delighted to meet with you today， and address such a distinguished audience at the Australian Parliament Building. Let me begin by expressing， on behalf of the Chinese Government and people， my best wishes to you and， through you， to the courageous a
President Hu：
The Honourable Neil Andrew， Speaker of the House of Representatives，
The Honourable Paul Calvert， President of the Senate，
The Honourable Prime Minister John Howard，
Distinguished Members of the Federal Parliament of Australia，
Ladies and Gentlemen，
I am delighted to meet with you today， and address such a distinguished audience at the Australian Parliament Building. Let me begin by expressing， on behalf of the Chinese Government and people， my best wishes to you and， through you， to the courageous and hard-working Australian people.
Though located in different hemispheres and separated by high seas， the people of China and Australia enjoy a friendly exchange that dates back centuries. The Chinese people have all along cherished amicable feelings about the Australian people. Back in 1420s， the expeditionary fleets of China's Ming Dynasty reached Australian shores. For centuries， the Chinese sailed across vast seas and settled down in what they called “Southern Land”， or today's Australia. They brought Chinese culture to this land and lived harmoniously with the local people， contributing their proud share to Australia's economy， society and its thriving pluralistic culture.
More than three decades have passed since China and Australia established diplomatic relations. The bilateral ties have stood the tests of time and international vicissitudes， and made steady headway. To consolidate and develop its all-round cooperation with Australia is a key component of China's external relations. We have always viewed our friendly ties with Australia from a strategic and long-term perspective. To cultivate deeper and all-round cooperation between the two countries is the common aspiration of the two governments and peoples. This afternoon， I will have an in-depth exchange of views with Prime Minister Howard on bilateral ties and the regional and international issues of mutual interest. We will also sign a series of bilateral documents on cooperation. All this shows that China-Australia cooperation in the various fields is going deeper and broader. I am convinced that China and Australia will shape a relationship of all-round cooperation that features a high degree of mutual trust， long-term friendship and mutual benefit， a relationship that makes our two peoples both winners.
How should countries go about their relations with one another in this complicated and diverse world？ It is a question that is on the minds of many people. We are of the view that for a smooth conduct of state-to-state relations and for lasting peace and common prosperity， all countries should act in compliance with the following principles：
First， politically， they should respect each other， seek common ground while putting aside differences and endeavour to expand areas of agreement.
Our world is a diverse place like a rainbow of many colours. Civilisations， social systems， development models， as different as they may be， should nonetheless respect one another， learning from each other's strong points to make up for one's own weakness amid competition and comparison and achieving common development by seeking common ground while shelving differences. By mutual respect politically， we mean that the political system and path of political development chosen by the people of each country should be respected. Democracy is the common pursuit of mankind， and all countries must earnestly protect the democratic rights of the people. In the past 20 years and more since China embarked on the road of reform and opening up， we have moved steadfastly to promote political restructuring and vigorously build democratic politics under socialism. While upholding and improving our systems of people's congresses， multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party， and regional ethnic autonomy， we have advanced the process of scientific and democratic decision-making and promoted grassroots democracy， protection of citizens' rights and freedoms， and democratic elections， democratic decision-making， democratic management and democratic supervision by the people in the country's political， economic， cultural and social life according to law. We have stepped up the building of rule of law in China， making sure that there are laws to go by， that the laws must be observed and strictly enforced and that violators must be dealt with. As a result， the enthusiasm， initiative and creativeness of the Chinese people of all ethnic groups have been galvanized， providing an immense driving force for the country's development. In future， we will continue to move forward our political restructuring in a vigorous and cautious manner as our national conditions merit， improve our democratic institutions and legal systems and build a socialist political civilization.
True， China and Australia are different in social systems. This is the result of different choices made by our people in light of their national conditions， and the two countries' different historical evolution. As China-Australia relations prove， so long as they understand and treat each other as equals and respect their respective national conditions and circumstances， countries with different social systems may very well become partners of friendly cooperation with constantly increased common ground.
Second， economically， they should complement and benefit one another， deepen their cooperation and achieve common development.
