国务院新闻办公室主任王晨在新年招待会上致辞（摄影 杨同贺）

　　在新年招待会上的致辞

　　(2008年12月16日)

　　国务院新闻办公室主任 王晨

　　女士们、先生们、朋友们：

　　大家晚上好！

　　很高兴在新年即将到来之际与大家在此相聚。首先，我代表国务院新闻办公室向出席今晚招待会的驻华使节、新闻官员、中外传媒界的朋友们表示热烈的欢迎。

　　2008年对中国和中国人民来说是极不寻常，极不平凡的一年。一年来，我国接连经历了一些难以预料，历史罕见的重大考验，从年初的南方严重低温雨雪冰冻灾害、拉萨“3·14”打砸抢烧暴力事件，到“5·12”四川汶川特大地震，到奥运会和残奥会的举办，大事不断，突发事件不断。面临重大自然灾害困难和国际风云变幻的考验，我们党和政府带领全国人民坚定信心、同心同德、顽强拼搏，成功举办了北京奥运会、残奥会，成功的实现了神舟七号载人飞船的飞行，成功的举办了第七届亚欧首脑会议等一系列重大国际活动，成功的推动了我国经济平稳快速发展。我们取得的成功，显示了改革开放30年我国强大的经济实力，说明了中国特色社会主义道路的正确性，充分体现了中国人民不畏艰难险阻，自强不息的伟大民族精神。

　　在即将过去的一年里，按照及时准确、公开透明的原则，围绕国际社会对我国经济社会发展进程的关心关注，就经济运行、抗震救灾、知识产权保护等各方面问题，国务院新闻办共举办80多场新闻发布会，组织协调中外记者到新闻现场采访，会同各地各部门为媒体记者采访提供我国政治、经济、社会发展等各方面新闻信息，介绍我国的真实情况，阐述我国政府立场和方针政策。与各国媒体和政府新闻机构坦率沟通，真诚交流，开展合作，取得了积极的进展，增进了相互理解与互信，也得到了中外记者的支持和配合。在此，我谨向在座各位表示衷心的感谢。

　　2009年是新中国成立60周年，也是我国推进“十一五”规划顺利实施的关键一年。面对严峻的经济形势挑战，我们将立足扩大内需保持经济平稳较快增长，加快发展方式转变和结构调整提高可持续发展能力，深化改革开放增强经济社会发展的活力与动力，加强社会建设解决涉及群众利益的难点热点问题，促进经济社会平稳较快发展。我们国务院新闻办的职责就是向世界说明一个真实的中国，通过我们的工作，让世界更好地了解中国，也让中国更好地了解世界。我们将继续坚持对外开放政策，以更加积极开放的姿态，认真执行《外国常驻新闻机构和外国记者采访条例》，全面、及时、准确地介绍中国经济社会发展情况。我们欢迎更多的外国记者到中国来采访报道，也愿意并将继续为中外媒体采访提供更高质量的服务。

　　女士们、先生们、朋友们：圣诞节即将来临，新年也就要来了，在这里我提前向各位送上圣诞节的祝福和新年的问候。祝大家身体健康！万事如意！

　　最后，我提议为在新的一年里我们有更好的合作干杯!

　　谢谢大家！

　　Address by Minister Wang Chen at New Year’s Reception

　　(December 16， 2008)

　　Ladies and gentlemen，

　　Dear friends:

　　Good evening!

　　Today， I have great pleasure to meet with you when the New Year is drawing closer. First of all， on behalf of the State Council Information Office， I wish to extend warm welcome to foreign diplomats， press officials and friends from Chinese and international media circles.

　　The year 2008 stands as a very unusual and eventful year for China and the Chinese people. Over the past year， we have gone through a series of unexpected， rare and severe challenges. In the beginning of the year， we suffered low temperature， snow and ice storms in southern China. On March 14th， a riot involving assaults， vandalism， looting and arson erupted in Lhasa. On May 12th， a massive earthquake hit Wenchuan in Sichuan Province. Then， we hosted Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. In a word， we experienced major events and emergencies one after another. In face of grave natural disasters and volatile international situation， the Communist Party of China and the Chinese Government have shown strong leadership in mobilizing the Chinese people to enhance confidence and work hard with one heart and one mind. We successfully hosted Beijing Olympic Games and Paralympic Games， accomplished the mission of Shenzhou No.7 manned spacecraft， hosted the Seventh ASEM Summit and other international events. We have also maintained steady and fast economic development. The success we achieved demonstrates the economic power China has attained over the past three decades of reform and opening-up， indicates the right choice of pursuing socialism with Chinese characteristics and highlights the great spirit of the Chinese nation—bravery and self-dependence.

　　Over the past year， the State Council Information Office， following the principle of timeliness， accuracy， openness and transparency， has held more than 80 press conferences covering a wide range of issues such as economic operation， earthquake and disaster relief operations， and protection of intellectual property rights. We have organized Chinese and foreign journalists to cover events on-site， and worked with other departments and local governments to provide journalists with information on China’s political， economic and social developments， to present the true situation in China and to explain the positions and policies of the Chinese Government. We have also conducted frank dialogues， sincere exchanges and fruitful cooperation with foreign media and governmental information institutions， thereby enhancing mutual understanding and trust. In this process， we have enjoyed the support and cooperation from Chinese and foreign journalists. I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to extend heart-felt thanks to all friends present here.

　　The year 2009 marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China， and is a crucial year to implement the Eleventh Five-Year Plan. Under the circumstances of severe economic challenges， we will expand domestic needs to maintain steady and fast economic growth， and speed up the change of development mode and economic restructuring to achieve sustainable development. We will also deepen reform and opening-up to strengthen the vitality and dynamics of China’s socio-economic development， and intensify social construction to resolve those difficult and hot issues involving the interest of common people， so as to promote a stable and rapid socio-economic development. The responsibility of the State Council Information Office is to introduce a true China to the world. Through our work， the world will better understand China， and China will better understand the world. We will adhere to the policy of opening-up， and take a more positive attitude to implement the regulation on reporting activities by foreign press institutions and journalists in China. We will provide information on China’s socio-economic developments in a comprehensive， timely and accurate manner. We welcome more foreign journalists to China to cover events here， and are ready to provide even better service to Chinese and foreign media.

　　Ladies and gentlemen， dear friends: Christmas is just a few days away and the New Year is coming soon. I would like to extend season’s greetings to all of you in advance. I wish you good health and good luck in everything!

　　Last but not least， I propose a toast for our better cooperation in the next year.

　　Cheers!

　　Thank you!