Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the outset, on behalf of the Chinese Mission to the United Nations, I extend my congratulations on the opening of Tomur Dawamat Poetry, Calligraphy and Painting Exhibition at the United Nations.

(Photograph by Shen Hong/Xinhua News Agency)

Mr. Tomur Dawamat is a well-respected ethnic minority state leader in China. He is also a talented and prolific poet. His poems, marked by profound patriotism and perpetual pursuit of peace and friendship, reflect his firm conviction in national reunification and ethnic unity as well as his deep love for his motherland. His poems also bring to life the prosperous development and beautiful future of China's ethnic minority regions after the founding of the People's Republic of China, especially after the inception of the reform and opening up policy.

I also wish to pay tribute to the Chinese calligraphers and artists who have reproduced Mr. Tomur Dawamat's poems in the forms of calligraphy in Uygur, Arabic and mandarin Chinese languages and traditional Chinese painting. These calligraphy and painting works not only give vivid expression to the insightful thoughts and artistic beauty of the original poems, but also showcase the diversity and charm of the time-honored traditional Chinese culture.

The United Nations provides an important platform for promoting cultural exchanges and fostering peace and friendship. I sincerely hope that the traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting works on display toady will convey the Chinese people's aspirations and love for peace and friendship to the people around the world. I wish this exhibition a complete success. Thank you.