China celebrates 67th National Day
The celebration of the People’s Republic of China’s 67th founding anniversary held at the ballroom of Shangri- La at the For t was a great success, with diplomats, senators, government off icials and of course businessmen — many of whom are of Chinese descent — joining in the festivities. Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao
Jianhua was all smiles as he acceded to a request for a special photo with US Ambassador Philip Goldberg and Russian Ambassador Igor Khovaev, both of whom also gamely posed. The three diplomats were later seen engaged in light conversation, drawing smiles from the guests who saw diplomacy in action during the event.
The Chinese Ambassador has a lot of reasons to smile nowadays because the sun seems to be rising “beautifully” (as the Agence France-Presse described it) on the relations between China and the Philippines, with President Rodrigo Duterte announcing his intention to open up new alliances with Russia and China.
“The clouds are fading away. The sun is rising over the horizon and will shine beautifully on the new chapter of bilateral relations,” the ambassador said in his speech, likewise expressing support for the president’s efforts to rid the country of the illegal drug menace, which he characterized as “the enemy of all mankind.”
The PRC, with it s populat ion of 1.37 bi l l ion according to the CIA World Factbook, is the world’s most populous, and the second largest country in terms of land area. It is also the second largest economy with a GDP ( purchasing power parity) estimated at $19.39 trillion in 2015.