Mr. President,

At the outset, please allow me to thank the chairman of the COPUOS for his introduction to this item. The more science and technology advance and society develops, the better we understand that space technology, as a systematic engineering technology, has been used for peaceful exploration, development and utilization of outer space. It is one of the most influential hi-tech technologies in the world today. With the descent of space age, space technology increasingly and extensively penetrates into the modern production process and our daily life. It has also played an important role in our endeavor to achieve sustainable development. It was under such circumstances that the UNISPACE III was held in Vienna in 1999 on the eve of the 21st century. The Vienna Declaration under the theme of "space millennium: space and human progress" was adopted, which has set forth guiding principles and recommendations for utilizing space technology and responding to challenges. It is an instrument with historical significance. Its positive impact will enhance peaceful uses of space science and technology, reinforce international space cooperation, and promote economic development and social progress of all countries, especially of the developing countries.

The Chinese Government has consistently supported the peaceful use of outer space with special attention given to the implementation of the UNISPACE III Recommendations. Since 2000, the Chinese Government, in conjunction with OOSA and ESCAP, co-hosted a number of training courses for the Asia-Pacific countries, and workshops and seminars on space technology and application. China also carries out activities annually to commemorate the World Space Week and to disseminate the purposes of the United Nations on the peaceful uses of outer space. We have taken an active part in the COPUOS disaster management multi-year action team. We co-chaired this action team with Canada and France and worked with other participating countries to put forward specific proposals for establishing, within the UN system, a global disaster coordination and management mechanism based on space resources. The Chinese Government has offered substantive human and financial resources for the implementation of the UNISPACE III Recommendations.

Mr. President, the objective of human exploration and development of outer space should be for its peaceful applications and for the benefit of people from all nations. All countries should enjoy equal rights, and take an active part in exploration and peaceful uses of outer space. All activities in outer space should be conducive to international peace and security, and to human subsistence and development. Therefore, the Chinese Government advocates closer international space cooperation based on equality, mutual benefit, and common progress. In international space cooperation, we should abide by the basic principles embodied in the UNGA Resolution 51/122 of 1996, entitled "Declaration on International Cooperation in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space for the Benefit and in the Interest of All States, Taking into Particular Account the Need of Developing Countries". China shall continue to reinforce space cooperation with developing countries, actively promote Asia Pacific regional cooperation, and support space cooperation with other regions of the world. We will continue our cooperation with developed countries for space capacity building of the developing countries, and for economic and social frog-leap development through space technology and its applications.

Mr. President, as a developing country, China always defines its space program based on realistic needs and long-term strategy of our national development. With our achievements, our next "five-year-plan" shall focus on satellite application and the development of large capacity, high quality and enduring telecommunication satellite, so as to gradually consolidate China's satellite telecommunication industry. We will further study and explore a new generation of non toxic, non pollution, high efficiency and low cost launch vehicles, and improve the capacity and reliability of the existing Long March launch vehicle. We also plan to establish an integrated long-term, stable, all-weather, high orbit resolution earth observation system mainly composed of smaller satellites of meteorology, earth resources, and ocean, earth and environment disaster monitoring. We shall continue our researches on earth-sun physics, human space flight programs, lunar orbiting engineering, and deep space exploration, so as to facilitate the sustainable development of China's space program.

Mr. President, 21st century is for the vigorous development of space science, space technology and its applications. The political, economic, scientific, technological and cultural linkage of the world is getting closer. New opportunities and possibilities might occur in our efforts to seek solutions to long-standing global problems. The Chinese Government will continue its international space cooperation with rest of the world, actively conduct space science study, promote space technology development, and reinforce space applications and their implementation, so that space technology will better serve our human society.

Thank you, Mr. President.