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Remarks by Ambassador Zhang Jun at Virtual Celebration of the First International Tea Day

2020-05-21 05:31

Your Excellency President Bande,

Director-general QU Dongyu,Excellencies,Colleagues and friends, I am delighted to meet you online and celebrate the first International Tea Day. Thank you to the Food and Agriculture Organization for co-organizing this event with the Permanent Mission of China, and thank you all for your active participation. The 74th session of the General Assembly adopted a resolution in December 2019, which established May 21 as the International Tea Day. This has fully affirmed the great value of tea to human society, economy and culture, added a new dimension to the tea culture, and provided a fresh opportunity for deepening cooperation in the field of tea. Today, President Xi Jinping sent a letter expressing warm congratulations on a series of activities marking the first International Tea Day. He said China is willing to work with all sides to nurture the sustained and healthy development of the global tea industry, deepen cultural exchange on tea, and allow more people to relish lives accompanied by tea.

Colleagues and friends,

—Tea is a symbol of harmony between man and nature. As a gift of nature, tea is good for health and enriches human life. Meanwhile, through tea planting, production and operation, people nourish and give back to nature. This cycle of man and nature is a vivid testament to the philosophy of “Unity of Heaven and Man”.

—Tea is an important pillar of human economic activities. For thousands of years, tea has been an economic crop that nurtured generation after generation. Today, tea is still an important commodity in global trade and a main source of income for many households. The development of tea-related industries has created tremendous job opportunities for countries and their people.

—Tea is a bridge for cultural exchanges. From the ancient Silk Road and Tea Horse Road to the “Belt and Road” today, from China to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the rest of the world, tea has traveled through history and across borders and promoted communication and integration among different cultures. Various kinds of tea taste different, i.e. Longjing tea, Ceylon black tea and South American mate tea, but they all carry the friendship between countries and peoples and embody the notions of “harmony without uniformity” and coexistence of diversity.

China is the hometown of tea, and tea contributes to the inheritance of Chinese culture. The six major varieties of tea in China are loved by people all over the country. Through the cycle of growing, picking, making and tasting tea, China's tea culture has continued to develop and become an integral part of Chinese life. Today, all kinds of tea from other parts of the world are also deeply welcomed by the Chinese people, and have built a bridge between China and the world. Colleagues and friends, The inception of "International Tea Day" has given tea new life and vitality. With the shared love for tea, people of all countries could work together to build a better and more harmonious world. Tea is a good partner in our endeavor to promote the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, to protect Mother Earth, the common home of mankind and to achieve green development. Tea is a good business that can help more farmers shake off poverty and attain the SDGs. As President Xi Jinping said, lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets. Tea is a catalyst of friendship that can bring people closer together, promote trade and build an interconnected world. Tea can also help us tackle the challenges posed by the coronavirus, maintain stable and unimpeded industrial and supply chains and facilitate the recovery of world economy.

As we speak, the coronavirus is still raging across the world, and we have to continue working from home for a while. May I suggest that we use this special period and invite each other from distance to drink tea together, think together, and explore together the future for multilateralism and humanity. I look forward to seeing you soon and hope that by then we could turn our thinking into action and make new contributions to a better future shared by all.

To conclude, I wish you a happy and healthy "International Tea Day".

Thank you.

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