Speeches, etc.

Margaret Thatcher

Speech at Chinese welcoming banquet

Document type: Speeches, interviews, etc.
Venue: Great Hall of the People, Beijing
Source: Thatcher Archive: speaking text
Editorial comments: 1930 local time.
Importance ranking: Minor
Word count: 1215
Themes: Defence (general), Foreign policy (Asia), Foreign policy (development, aid, etc)

Your Excellency Zhao ZiyangPremier Zhao, your Excellencies, Ambassador, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Premier. I am a doubly privileged visitor. Not only is this the second time in five years that I have visited China to enjoy your warm and generous hospitality, but I find to my astonishment that I am the first British Prime Minister in office to do so. This does not mean that we have been neglectful of China. The stream of high-level visitors in both directions testifies to that. [end p1] Nevertheless, it is an omission which I am proud to be able to rectify and I hope my presence here tonight is further proof of the importance we in Britain attach to relations with your great country.

It is a long way from Peking to London. The distance has sometimes seemed compounded by historical, philosophical and political gaps in our outlooks. It is nevertheless many years since our two worlds first touched. [end p2]

In 1596 Queen Elizabeth the First wrote to the Ming Emperor Wan Li expressing the hope that trade could be developed between Britain and China.

In 1686 Robert Hooke of the Royal Society wrote that

“A better knowledge of China's civilisation would lay open to us an empire of learning, hitherto fabulously described” .
[end p3]

Since then generations of my countrymen have been fascinated by China.

Soon British scientists became more frequent visitors to China which, as we all recognise, is the home of many important scientific inventions. [end p4]

Cultural and scientific contact went from strength to strength through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and the tradition of Chinese studies in Britain has continued to the present day.

Our political relations have been more varied. But there were important moments when history brought us together. I recall Sun Yatsen 's very close contacts with Britain, leading up to the famous attempt by the then Chinese legation to kidnap him and return him to China, a plot which was foiled with the help of the British Foreign Office. [end p5]

Another more recent example perhaps says something more about the two countries: for some time in 1940 and 1941 Britain and China were the only two nations actively Engaged in the war against fascism. Ten years later we were one of the first West European countries to recognise the Chinese People's Republic.

Today, although our political philosophies are very different, our understanding has grown enormously and in world affairs our interests over wide areas are close. [end p6]

I come to China at an important time. Your historic 12th Congress has laid down new guidelines for your administration and your plans for construction. I have been struck in the China of today by the mood of realism and the practical determination to achieve steady, well-based economic development within your own system of beliefs and principles.

We know that for both domestic and international problems there are no magic solutions, no soft options. Peace with freedom is our first principle. And we know that to preserve that peace we must be strong. [end p7] It is an illusion to think that there is an effective alternative. It is weakness that attracts an aggressor, not strength. Aggression must not be allowed to pay. I believe you have an expression that says the same thing in a vivid way: “We must not give wings to tigers” .

Opposition to hegemonism is a fundamental Chinese principle of which you, Mr. Premier, have spoken. It is a concept we in Western Europe understand. So do the peoples of Eastern Europe, who are still striving for independence thirty-seven years after the Second World War. It is because of our opposition to hegemonism that we in Europe are determined to resist [end p8] military and political pressures which would erode our independence and undermine our form of Government and way of life. This is why we have joined together in NATO in a free association of countries united not only by common political philosophies, but by the will to resist.

Retreat from unpleasant realities into comforting illusions rarely solves any problems. But there are also some comforting realities in international affairs such as the growing unity of purpose of the European Community and the fundamental strength of the North Atlantic Alliance on which Western security and prosperity are founded. [end p9]

Because of our historical experience and our active participation in the Commonwealth, Britain is responsive to the concerns, particularly the economic concerns, of the developing countries. We are continuing a large aid programme despite our need to restrain public expenditure. We are making it possible for private individuals and firms to play their part, for example by the removal of exchange control restrictions, which has encouraged private investment abroad. We support the open trading system which is to the ultimate advantage of all. We know that the long-term prosperity of the developing countries is linked with our own. [end p10]

Since my first visit in 1977 there have been many changes in the world, and there have been changes in China, too. One change which gives me particular encouragement is the way in which Sino-British relations have developed. Many British Ministers have been here as your guests. We have been able to welcome many of your own leaders in Britain, including yourself, Mr. Premier. At that time, you were presiding over the destinies of some 100 million people in Szechuan. Sino-British links have multiplied—political, commercial, educational, cultural, defence, science and technology. [end p11] Our trade has expanded, though not as much as I should like. Chinese exports to Britain are increasing and we should like to see an increase in our exports to China as well as an increase in the volume of trade. British industry has become much more competitive in the last year or two. It now stands ready to help China's ambitious modernisation programme, especially in sectors where China has declared a priority interest: in energy, including oil and coal mining, in communications, building, port construction, aviation and telecommunications, and in agricultural science and consultative services. [end p12] In all these fields we shall be glad to work with you.

We already recognise that we have similar interests over wide areas. We have a growing habit of high-level exchanges on world problems and on bilateral issues. We have had a useful first round of talks today. We have not yet begun our discussions on Hong Kong. I look forward to pursuing this important matter with you tomorrow. [end p13]

Mr. Premier, I have referred to the geographical distance between our two countries, but geography is not decisive, particularly in the shrinking world of today. In a poem addressed to a departing friend, one of your Tang poets said “provided our friendship survives, distances mean very little, although dwelling on far horizons we can still be as near neighbours.” [end p14] His words apply to nations, too. The friendship between Britain and China is good for us and good for the world. I am proud to be here tonight to help write a new page in the history of that friendship.

May I now propose a toast to the health of His Excellency Mr. Ye Jianying, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress, to the health of His Excellency Premier Zhao Ziyang, to the health of Chinese leaders, to all distinguished Chinese friends present and to the further development of the friendship between Great Britain and China.