Israeli president praises Chinese achievements

Israeli President Shimon Peres Thursday commended the Chinese people and the Chinese government for the achievements they have made since the People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded 63 years ago.

Peres made his comments at a reception held in Tel Aviv by the Chinese embassy in Israel to mark the 63rd anniversary of the PRC' s founding.

"China has gone through a tremendous change in the past decades, but it wasn't the land -- it was the people. Chinese man and women promoted themselves. Look at China's situation 30 years ago and today, as one of the world's leading nations," Peres said.

"Who would have thought back then that China would have become one of the most powerful nations in the world?" he said.

Israel should "follow China's example," and look for the potential inherent in its people, Peres said, adding that China should set an example for "peoples and countries" around the world.

Peres also spoke of China's promising future, which he said depends on wisdom and knowledge, and talked about the great Chinese way of "harmonizing differences," be them differences of culture, style or language.

Chinese ambassador to Israel Gao Yanping, who hosted the ceremony, lauded the 20 years of fruitful relations between Israel and China.

"The past two decades are of significance to Chinese-Israeli relations, producing great achievements and frequent exchanges between political parties, law enforcement agencies, defense officials, businessmen, tourists and others," she said.

She also mentioned the strong trade ties between the two countries, which have increased tremendously in the past decades.

"China is shifting its development mode and pursuing economic structural adjustment," Gao said.

"Israel is a pioneer in innovation, a start-up nation and an important trading partner of China in this region. We can boost together our economies and social development, science and technology," she said.