To the health of the Secretary of State and Mrs. Kissinger, to the health of all the other American guests, and to the health of all comrades and friends present here.
Secretary Kissinger
Mr. Vice Premier, Mr. Foreign Minister, distinguished guests, friends:
I appreciate this warm reception on my seventh visit to China, which is all the more meaningful to me because I am accompanied by my wife and by my children. I am glad that they can share what to the American people and to all of us in public life will always be one of the most significant initiatives of American foreign policy.
The beginning of the process of normalization of relations with the People's Republic of China, and its continuation in the years since then, has not been a matter of expediency but a fixed principle of American foreign policy.
Since I was here last, there have been many changes internationally and some changes in the United States. But it was no accident that the new American President saw your Ambassador the first afternoon he was in office, within a few hours of having taken his oath of office, and that he reaffirmed on that occasion that we would continue to pursue the principles of the Shanghai Communique and that we would continue to follow the goal of normalization of relations with the People's Republic of China.
And President Ford has sent me here to continue the fruitful exchanges of views that we have had in every year, to continue the process of normalization and to affirm again the fixed principles of American foreign policy.
I look forward to my talks with the Vice Premier and the Foreign Minister. I am glad that I have already had an opportunity to see the Prime Minister and to recall the many occasions of previous visits when we exchanged views.
We live in a period of great change and a period that is characterized by much upheaval. We believe that this change must lead to a new and better order for all of the peoples of the world, and it is to this goal that American foreign policy is dedicated.
We consider the exchanges on these subjects as well as others with the leaders of the People's Republic of China of the greatest consequence.
We agree that in the last years, relations between our two countries have moved ahead steadily. I am here to continue this process, and I am confident that it will succeed.
So, I would like to propose a toast to the friendship of the American and Chinese peoples and to the health and long life of the Vice Premier and the Foreign Minister, and to the health and long life of Chairman Mao and to our lasting friendship.
