Remarks by H.E. Ambassador Liu Xiaoming

Music fosters an emotional bond between people. It is a language without borders. In the language of music, tonight's concert will tell about three dreams.

The first dream is about cooperation.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening up. It is also the fifth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Deeper reform and greater opening up in China, and the steady development of the BRI create invaluable opportunities for China-UK cooperation. In fact, through joint efforts, our two countries have already achieved fruitful results in a wide range of areas, from economy and trade, financial services, investment to science and technology, health care, innovation and energy.

China and the UK are like a pair of chopsticks. As long as we support each other and work closely together, we will deliver for our people.

The second dream is about friendship.

China-UK relations have withstood difficulties and grown mature. The people of our two countries have had increasingly close exchanges.

* There are more than 1.5 million mutual visits between our two countries every year and 150 passenger flights every week.

* There are more Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms in the UK than in any other European countries. The Chinese language for the first time became the third most popular foreign language in this year's A-level exams.

* And there are more and more NGOs like the Chopsticks Club that are working for the China-UK friendship.