Oriented on making people closer

The most important public holiday among the friendly Chinese people is the Founding Day of the People's Republic of China.

74 years ago, at a rally of thousands in Tiananmen Square, the formation of a new state, the People's Republic of China, was proclaimed.

The Day of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, according to the tradition of recent decades, is celebrated on a grand scale characteristic of the Chinese people - large-scale celebrations, cultural events, concerts, and sports events are held. There are flower arrangements everywhere, the streets are colorfully decorated, and holiday trade is going on briskly, including souvenirs on the corresponding theme.

And in Ashgabat the day before, the Chinese Embassy in Turkmenistan celebrated the Day of the Founding of the People's Republic of China. Diplomats and representatives of international organizations came to congratulate their Chinese colleagues.

Welcoming the guests, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China Qian Naicheng told those present about the successes of the Chinese people, which were achieved under the leadership of the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China towards building a modernized socialist power.

In particular, it was said that over the past ten years, more than 150 countries and 30 international organizations have joined the One Belt, One Road initiative, resulting in more than 3 thousand projects being formalized and about a trillion US dollars being invested. In the first half of this year, the volume of imports and exports between China and countries along the One Belt-One Road increased by 9.8% as compared to the same period of the last year.

– China, by choosing multilateralism as its approach, is promoting the construction of a Community with a Shared Destiny for Humanity! - the ambassador said.

Speaking about bilateral cooperation, Mr. Naicheng noted that over the past 32 years since gaining independence, Turkmenistan has achieved fruitful results in state building and national revival.

“Chinese-Turkmen cooperation has powerful internal dynamics,” the diplomat continued. – From January to August this year, bilateral trade reached 7.29 billion US dollars, an increase of 5.7% as compared to the same period of the last year... Cooperation in the field of natural gas is the cornerstone of China-Turkmen relations, Turkmenistan has already exported more than 380 billion cubic meters of gas to China.

At the ceremonial part of the holiday, Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis Gakhryman Rozyev spoke on behalf of Turkmenistan:

• China is one of the most dynamically developing countries in the modern world. Our country is well aware that such tremendous successes were possible thanks to the strategic course that the leadership of the People's Republic of China has developed and is implementing with the full support of the Chinese people.

The parliamentarian especially emphasized that in 2023, relations between Turkmenistan and the PRC acquired a comprehensive strategic character after the signing of a Joint Statement following the state visit of President Serdar Berdimuhamedov to the PRC on January 5-6 of this year.

“We are confident that Turkmenistan and the People’s Republic of China, the Turkmen and Chinese peoples will continue to go together along the path of progress and prosperity,” Deputy Chairman of the National Parliament Gakhryman Rozyev said, concluding his speech.

The formal part of the evening harmoniously turned into the culinary part. No one disputes the opinion that Chinese cuisine is one of the richest, most diverse and, so to speak, “surprising”. It is unlikely that anyone will be able to compete with the Chinese in their ability to combine antagonistic tastes - bitter with sweet, salty with sour. And everything is based on and comes from Chinese folk philosophy, the cornerstone of which is the flow of opposite Yin and Yang into each other.

But even the unsurpassed Chinese food could not distract from the discussion of current issues that were resolved right at the table by Ambassador Qian Naicheng and the Hero of Turkmenistan, executive secretary of the National Commission of Turkmenistan for UNESCO Chinar Rustemova, who once worked for a long time in the PRC as the head of the Turkmen diplomatic mission.

Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis Gakhryman Rozyev, who, as one of the leaders of the representative body exercising legislative power in the country, in a conversation with the Chinese ambassador, also noted the fruitful nature of inter-parliamentary relations between Turkmenistan and the PRC, aimed at studying and applying in practice the experience of legislative work of the two countries, as well as the effectiveness of the work of the Interparliamentary Friendship Group between deputies of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan and the All-China People's Congress of the People's Republic of China.

This is how the useful and the pleasant were combined at the table. No matter what, Chinese philosophy is in action.

It’s not without reason that they say that if you want to know the spirit of a people, then get acquainted with its national cuisine.

Delicacies of the Celestial Empire pampered gourmets. The fried shrimp with salty, sour and sweet tastes or the Yangzhou fried rice cost a lot, and the pike perch stewed in white sauce melted in your mouth. Something international was felt in the Asian-style bruschetta with pesto sauce and sun-dried tomatoes. But baked lamb in pomegranate sauce was already somewhat closer to Turkmen cuisine.

And the brilliant performance of the orchestra under the direction of Resul Klychev contributed to the festive mood - the famous melodies and songs of the two friendly nations were performed by the musicians.

So, happy holiday, Chinese friends!

Bekdurdy AMANSARYEV

Photo: orient.tm