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Demystifying Ben Xu： What are the highlights of the fifth remake？

　　 1905 movie network news It is the most influential Christian work in the 19th century. It was published on November 12th, 1880 by Lou Wallace. "Ben Xu" ranked first in the bestseller list from its publication until Gone with the Wind came out in 1936. Since the birth of film technology, Ben Xu has been put on the big screen four times in 1907, 1925, 1959 and 2003, and was adapted into a mini-TV series in 2010, which is a big darling of Hollywood remake.

　　 The 1959 version of Ben Xu cost as much as $15 million, which was the most epic at that time, with a length of three hours and 32 minutes, and it was a good film with no urine spots. In early 1960, Ben Xu won 11 Oscars, including best film, best director, best actor and supporting actor. This record was tied by The Tenica and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, but it has not been surpassed so far.

　　 This year, "Ben Xu" was moved to the big screen for the fifth time, using IMAX 3D, and the cost was as high as 100 million US dollars. Although the original work is a religious work that preaches how Christian love influences Jews, its core is a story about how Judas became a slave from the "rich second generation" and finally achieved revenge.

　　 In ancient Rome, Ben Xu, a wealthy family living in Jerusalem, lived a prosperous life. His eldest son Judas and his adopted son Misala were inseparable brothers. However, due to the opposition of Ben Xu’s mother, Misala could not fall in love with Judas’ sister, so he left Jerusalem in a rage and joined the army of Julius Caesar in Rome. Misala, a successful man, returned to his hometown after many years, hoping that Judas could help him, complete the Roman emperor’s rule over the city and sweep away the rebels. But Judas refused to betray his nation, which led to the breakup of his brothers. When the Roman army entered the city, a rebel sheltered by Judas tried to assassinate the Roman emperor on the roof of Ben Xu’s house, and failed, which implicated Ben Xu’s family. Judas was sold to a warship as a slave for boating, and he also lost the information of his family until the warship was attacked. Judas drifted to the island and returned to Jerusalem with the help of African businessmen to start his own revenge. Finally, influenced by Jesus, Judas realized the importance of great love and forgave Misala.

　　 Why is this revenge of the Jewish nobility so popular with Hollywood studios? From the 59-year edition to the present, what has Ben Xu surpassed in technology and art? Before the film was released, Xiao Bian sat down with the film’s creator at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, and chatted about their experience and behind-the-scenes story of filming the latest Ben Xu.

Remake? Please use the new word "new idea"

　　 Although "Ben Xu" is obviously a remake of Paramount and MGM, during the publicity process, the castors said in unison: "This is not a remake! It is a new imagination of the original work. " Well, the city will play. Let’s take a look at some contrast pictures, and how the "non-remake" Ben Xu re-imagined the original.

　　 1905: Please talk about what do you think is the difference between the new version and the 59-year version?

　　　Jack huston: Funnily enough, I am friends with Charlton Hester’s grandson in private. Our names are both Jack (laughs). So, when I heard that Hollywood was going to remake Ben Hur, I was very excited. After reading the script, I was even more excited, because I realized that this was not a remake, but a new director re-imagined this epic story with brand-new actors in the new era. I think the biggest difference is the role of Misala. When I went to the audition, I wanted to apply for Misala. I told Timo, the director, that I thought this character was full of tragedy, and I could feel his pain and helplessness. The’ 59 version made him a bad guy, but I didn’t think he was a villain. Teemo later gave me the role of Judas. He said that the reason why I was suitable to play Judas was my profound understanding of Misala. He felt that the core of the film was the complicated brotherhood between Misala and Judas, and the director wanted to reshape a different role of Misala, and my love for Misala was the key to make me play Judas well. So, he persuaded me to take over the role, and then we went into the hard shooting like the devil’s training (laughs).

　　 1905: The film really reflects the brotherhood with great colors. What do you understand from this brotherhood?

　　 Jack huston: The story of Ben Xu happened more than two thousand years ago, and the love and hatred in it will last forever. We are still experiencing all kinds of wars and attacks caused by religion and politics. No matter how advanced human civilization is, hatred still exists in people’s hearts. The 59-year-old edition of Ben Hur focuses on the revenge of Judah, but I think the society needs more kindness and love now, not hatred. Therefore, I think this film is all about the brotherhood between Judas and Misala, and I have learned a lot. When Judas returned to Jerusalem after suffering, he only had hatred in his heart, but in the end he realized that this hatred came from his love for his brother. Letting go of hate is the ultimate liberation, which is what I learned from movies. I am grateful that the director can explore the good nature of human beings with such relief, instead of simply telling a story of revenge.

　　 Jack huston, like Judas, was born in a prominent family. His grandfather john huston was a great director, who was nominated for the Oscar for nine times and won the Oscar for Best Director and Best Screenplay. The role of Misala is a Roman orphan adopted by a Jewish family. Actor Toby Kebbell grew up in England. He is a child of an ordinary family and has not been influenced by any art since childhood. He is a self-taught actor.

　　 1905: Toby, please talk about your birth background. Do you have anything in common with Misala?　

　　 Toby Kebbell: I have three elder brothers and one younger sister. I like to compete with my brothers since I was a child. In fact, this competitive spirit is the only similarity between Misala and me. I also like to compete with my brothers at home and often get into trouble, but they love me as always. My three brothers’ doting on me also made me a little arrogant and bent on getting ahead, which caused my personality defect. Also, I liked lying when I was a child, and later it became a habit. This may be the reason why I can be an actor. Actors are just a professional lying skill. When I was young, I wanted the whole world to see my talent and ability, so I became particularly competitive. I can fully understand Misala’s feelings when he left his family in Judah and went out to fight in Rome.

Ancient carriage race shot by modern GoPro

　　 The 1959 version of Ben Xu spent one million dollars and one year to build the Roman carriage stadium, making it the largest film studio at that time.

　　 The carriage race between Judas and Misala has always been a classic competition on the big screen. The speed of the carriage is amazing, and the contest between technology and wisdom between them is also very exciting. In the carriage race, Messala, who repeatedly killed Ben-Hur, was finally killed because of the collision of wheels. These scenes are well reflected in the latest version of Ben-Hur, with sound effects and soundtrack in place, which makes people feel the pleasure of watching nascar racing in one go. It is definitely the biggest highlight of the film.

　　 1905: In addition to the different characters, I found that the classic carriage race scene in the movie was also shot with many latest film technologies. Please talk about your feelings about shooting green screen.

　　 Jack huston: Many people thought that the play was made by computer special effects. In fact, you were cheated (laughs). Except for the scenes where the horses fell to the ground or were injured, they were all shot word for word according to the script. The whole Roman stadium was built from scratch, and the construction process was also filmed in the movie, so the audience saw the real studio construction site. Toby and I trained in carriage for three months, and then it took the crew six weeks to film the whole carriage race. Although director Teemo is a famous computer special effects director, this time, he was naughty to avoid using post-special effects. He wanted to surprise the audience. Therefore, the scenes where I was dragged by a horse on the ground and I was driving a carriage were all real. I have to say that on the first day of filming, I was always swept by a ponytail behind the horse, which was so hairy!

　　 Toby Kebbell: Jack and I have installed GroPro cameras on our bodies and heads, so that the audience can see the subjective picture of our horse racing, and with the wide-angle lens, people have a completely immersive feeling. Due to the technical limitations of the previous films, it is necessary to film the scenes of the carriage race in slow motion, and then speed up the play in the later stage. But our film doesn’t need to do this at all. GroPro is light and easy to operate, and it can capture the highlights of the whole competition. The audience in this era is watching YouTube, and they are all a generation who like streaming POV. I think they will like the epic film made by GroPro and experience the feeling of being pulled by four horses.

　　 1905: Aren’t those horses afraid?

　　 Jack huston: Not at all. They are cute! Sometimes, the directors shout cut, and they are still playing (laughing). When I first got on that carriage, I was the only one, because the director trusted these horses, haha. Then they began to run wildly. I wanted to step on the device to stop them with my feet, but the horses ran so happily that I had to step on it very hard that I came across at the corner. It was really exciting! Judas is a The Horse Whisperer in the script. He has the ability to communicate with horses, so my relationship with horses must be very close. In one scene, a horse is ill and Judas needs to cure her. We are also worried about how to make a healthy white horse act ill. As a result, as soon as I performed a worried look, the mare named Leah immediately understood my meaning and gently fell on her side in my arms. At that moment, the winner of Ma Jie was born! The horse trainer cried and said that he was completely moved by this scene.

　　 Jack is a Sagittarius. He thinks he is half man and half horse, which is especially suitable for the role of Judas.

Jesus can have many versions, but God has only one.Morgan FreemanTalent acting

　　 In the film, Rodrigue Santoro, a Brazilian-born actor, plays Jesus, which Xiao Bian thinks is the most valuable image of Jesus in film history.

　　 Throughout the history of movies, according to Wikipedia, there are more than 45 actors who have played Jesus, among which the famous actors include ewan mcgregor, Christian Bale and willem dafoe.

　　 In the new edition of Ben Xu, the image of Jesus does not appear much, which weakens the Christian color in the 59-year edition. Morgan Freeman plays a lot of African businessmen, and he is the instructor of Ben Xu’s carriage race. He also has an amazing "mop" hairstyle.

　　 Morgan Freeman once played God in a comedy film, and Jesus was the son of God. When Xiao Bian asked santoro what communication he had with the "God" actor, he said, "I tried to chat with Morgan Freeman several times, but in the end I didn’t have the courage. He really exists like a god."

　　 Morgan Freeman will be 80 years old next year. Although the old man’s answer is very concise, he is full of energy and has legs.

　　 1905: The story center of the new edition of Ben Xu is about the great love between people. What is the craziest thing you have done for love?

　　 Morgan Freeman: I can’t tell you. What I can tell you is that I had a girlfriend when I was 20 years old. She visited me from Los Angeles to San Diego. I didn’t want to leave after I put her on the train, but I didn’t have a ticket. I decided to hide and see if I could mix in the car. As a result, the conductor found me, and he persuaded me that people should not make trouble for themselves like this all their lives. I remembered later that I never got into trouble for love in my life.

　　 In the 1905-1959 version, your role was played by hugh griffith, who won the Oscar for Best Actor for this role. What do you think is the difference between your interpretation and his?

　　 Morgan Freeman: His version is more comic, but not as big as my role. I can say responsibly that our interpretations are totally different. I don’t think the audience will associate me with Greaves after watching it.

　　 1905: You have been acting all your life. Why did you choose this role?

　　 Morgan Freeman: In 1967, I got my first official salary as an actor. Before that, I struggled for eight years and walked around the United States as a walk-on. I couldn’t fill my stomach at all. Therefore, every day I wonder if I have something to do when I wake up. Shooting is what I like to do. My role in Ben Hur is very interesting. He is very powerful and has wonderful dialogue. I know I will like this experience.

　　 1905: The new version of Ben Xu will be presented to the audience in 3D. As an old actor, do you feel that the new technology has provided you with any different filming experience?

　　 Morgan Freeman: I think the audience can benefit more from this new technology. As an actor, I still go to the set every day, remember my lines and step on my walking mark. The performance process is the same as in the past. But I like IMAX 3D, and the audience will get a different experience from Ben Hur.

　　 1905: You are almost 80 years old … …

　　 Morgan Freeman: Who said that? ! (Laughter)

　　 1905: Looking back, what do you think is your most cherished life quality?

　　 Morgan Freeman: Desire, this is the most important quality (laughs). Then, it takes courage to be a man, and I firmly believe that. Then, we should see our own talent. I am lucky to be endowed with the talent of performing.

　　 Xiaobian finally wants to mention that the 2016 edition of "Ben Xu" pays tribute to the old edition, not on the screen, but carefully builds the scene of Judas being a rowing slave in the famous Cinecitta studio in Italy. Cinecitta means movie city in Italian, and Cleopatra was filmed here.

Ministry of Science and Technology and other four departments： some scientific research institutes pilot mission-oriented management reform.

　　Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, December 7th (Reporter Liu Yin) The reporter learned from the Ministry of Science and Technology on the 7th that in order to thoroughly implement the deployment of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China on strengthening the national strategic scientific and technological strength, optimizing the positioning of national scientific research institutions, and promoting scientific research institutions to focus on the national mission to build the national strategic scientific and technological strength and serve high-level scientific and technological self-reliance, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Central Organizing Committee, the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security jointly issued a notice recently to carry out mission-oriented management reform pilot projects in some scientific research institutions.

　　It is reported that the pilot work focuses on major basic, strategic and forward-looking scientific research fields, and some institutes are selected to carry out mission-oriented management reform pilots. The pilot objectives focus on enhancing the sense of mission and responsibility of scientific research institutes, promoting the rationalization of the relationship between institutes and management departments, improving the governance mechanism of scientific research institutes, exploring the establishment of a modern institute system, forming replicable and scalable reform pilot experience and institutional achievements, and creating a number of benchmark institutes for building a national strategic scientific and technological force.

　　The pilot tasks mainly include: clearly defining the responsibilities and missions of the institute, establishing the corporate governance structure, optimizing and adjusting the internal power allocation, improving the assessment and evaluation system, and improving the internal distribution and incentive mechanism. The competent department explores "package" authorization, systematically promotes supervision and internal control reform. The lead department will give support by strengthening the traction of major tasks, strengthening the support of major platforms, improving the support and guarantee mechanism, optimizing the organization management and improving the personnel management methods.

Bad luck! ＂Who Killed Don Quixote＂ actually took 17 years.

Special feature of 1905 film network Have you ever wondered how long a movie can last?

Du Qifeng’s film only took 19 days, and won the Academy Award and the Golden Horse Award for best director.

It took only half a month for Liu Zhenwei to take emergency photos of Wong Kar-wai, and it became a generation of classics.

Han Han filmed for more than 80 days and earned 1.046 billion box office.

It took richard linklater 12 years to shoot, and finally won the Golden Globe Award for best film.

What I want to talk about today is the closing film of Cannes International Film Festival. It took 17 years to finish, and it has become a public case in the film history. Near the opening of the film festival, the film is still riddled with lawsuits, which can be said to be quite eventful.

Terry gilliam, the director of this film, is detached from Hollywood and European critics. His image style is unique and full of imagination, and everyone who has seen his films knows his madness.

The story of the new film Who Killed Don Quixote focuses on Toby, an advertising director, played by adam driver. In the 21st century, he traveled back to the 17th century and returned to the Spanish village where he had stayed, and found the works adapted from his school days. One of the villagers firmly believed that he was Don Quixote and that Driver was his servant, Sankoh Panza, and they took an adventure.

The film itself is really unusual. The director uses flashback to blur the boundary between reality and fantasy, which makes the audience fall into great madness. But behind this is actually some messy creation and a full-fledged shooting cycle. The final harvest is also a bipolar evaluation.

"Village Voice" believes that "gilliam made us feel his madness and pulled us into the crazy and beautiful world he created."

Variety believes that "this is what the director’s fans fear most, because it is clumsy, confused and chaotic."

So, in these 17 years, what happened to Who Killed Don Quixote?

1989: The Origin of Don Quixote

Terry gilliam read Don Quixote by Cervantes in 1989 and decided to try to adapt it. The film has the same name as the novel.

In 1990, he signed an agreement with Phoenix Film Company, and sean connery was negotiating to play Don Quixote. Nigel hawthorne and danny devito are also discussing the roles of Don Quixote and Sankoh Panza. But in the end, because of the low budget, gilliam withdrew from the project, and this movie became a wish that he always wanted to complete but could not.

At that time, the production company used director Fred Schepisi to replace gilliam, and the leading role was changed to john cleese and robin williams. However, this plan was cancelled in 1997.

1998: Change the title of the film and rewrite the script.

Later, gilliam resumed cooperation with screenwriter Toby Grisoni, and the film was renamed "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote". In this version, the protagonists are not Don Quixote and Panza, but Toby.

Toby lives in the 21st century, and his name comes from Grisoni. He met Don Quixote through time. This technique draws lessons from Mark Twain’s "Breaking into King Arthur’s Palace by mistake" in 1889.

In 1998, terry gilliam’s other film "Fear of Las Vegas" premiered in Britain, and he also announced that the next film was Don Quixote. Having lost confidence in Hollywood, he decided to make a new film in Europe, with the location in Spain, and the budget was reduced from 40 million dollars to 32.1 million dollars.

Gilliam invited jean rochefort, his "perfect Don Quixote", to play the leading role, and French actor Reshef studied English for seven months. John Denip played the role of Toby, with his girlfriend vanessa paradis as the heroine.

2000: Bad luck for the first shooting.

In September 2000, the film officially started shooting in Badenas, northern Spain. On the first day of filming, F16 fighter planes flew back and forth in the air, damaging the recording. The next day, flash floods broke out, important equipment was damaged, and the color of the scene changed.

After the crew searched for some new equipment to resume shooting, on the fifth day, when Reshef was ready to perform, he was suffering from prostate disease and his expression was very painful. Subsequently, Reshef went to Paris to see a doctor and was diagnosed with double disc disease.

In the next few days, the crew has been filming other parts, including several scenes of Depp, but no one knows when Reshef will come back. Finally, the project stopped in November 2000.

The director joked that it was "one of the most troublesome movies in history", and it seemed that heaven and hell were united in contempt of gilliam’s Who Killed Don Quixote. The words "disaster", "collapse" and "bad luck" always revolve around this terminated project. The German insurance company claimed that it brought them a loss of 15 million dollars, and then took the copyright of the script as collateral.

It is worth noting that the documentary "Help! Don Quixote caught fire unexpectedly and was shortlisted for several film festivals.

2005: Butterfly Effect under the Lack of Economic Support

In 2005, gilliam once again showed his interest in this unfinished project, hoping that Gé rard Depardieu would play Don Quixote. However, due to various unfavorable influences before, it is difficult for him to get financial support from the film company.

During this time, he tried to make other films, but they all met with problems, including Nicolas Cage’s The Defective Detective and Good Omens, whose novel adaptation was darker. During the production, there was a conflict with producer Varnstam, and long-term cooperation photographer nicola pecorini was also fired.

At the Munich International Documentary Film Festival in 2006, gilliam revealed that there was still a play in this project, and the producer Jeremy Thomas was very interested. In August, he said that the legal dispute of the film had been solved and he planned to remake the film completely.

2008— 2012: Depp or Ivan? Stupid can’t tell the difference.

In 2008, gilliam resumed film preparation. In January 2009, the script was rewritten. Later, it was reported that in November 2009, gilliam had finished the remake of the role of Don Quixote, and refused to disclose the names of the actors.

In December, he released news that robert duvall would play Don Quixote, and Depp would still play Toby. But by this time, Johnny Depp had signed a contract with Disney, which was questioned. Depp said he wouldn’t take time out of his hectic schedule to play Don Quixote.

On May 17th, 2010, it was said that ewan mcgregor played a role in the film. On September 5th, gilliam said that there was a problem with the funds a month and a half ago, so the filming was postponed again.

By 2012, Duval had always kept in touch with gilliam, and said, "We rewrite the script every year, and you will be happy to see Don Quixote return with a new look in the saddle". But at this point, ewan mcgregor is not in the cast.

2013— 2015: The actor died and the project was shelved.

In November 2013, director gilliam appeared at the Venice Film Festival. He told Variety that he was trying to remake Don Quixote himself. "I just want to finish it and take it out of my life."

In January 2014, gilliam said on Facebook, "Don Quixote’s dream has started again. Can we see that old bastard on horseback come back this year?" In an interview with Empire, he said that on September 29th, 2014, the film will start shooting in the Canary Islands. Spanish producer Adrian Guerra will provide the funds.

In August, when gilliam was interviewed by The Wrap, he said that the script had changed a little, and the story was contemporary, focusing on the harm that movies did to people. In the film, "Some people were crazy, some became drunkards, and some became prostitutes".

In September, gilliam confirmed that john hurt played Don Quixote instead of Duval. Then in an interview with Rolling Stone, gilliam said that he had encountered some minor problems. He said, "I wasted too much time on this matter. If you shoot it, you will be as crazy as Don Quixote. This decision is crazy and unreasonable. The smart people around me told me to give up, but I know they are all reasonable people. "

In December, the film announced that jack O’Connell had decided to play Toby.

In December 2015, due to the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in john hurt, the film production was interrupted again. On January 27, 2017, Hutt died. In October, Reshef, who was originally chosen as Don Quixote, died.

2016: Funding problems lead to film stagnation.

In February 2016, gilliam talked with Portuguese producer Paulo Branco at the 66th Berlin Film Festival. At this time, he needed a budget of 16 million euros. The latter promised to give him money in September to start filming for 11 weeks.

At this time, the starring lineup changed again. adam driver played Toby, Mike Palin played Don Quixote, and Olga Kurylenko played the heroine. According to reports, Driver’s salary is 610,000 euros, while Palin’s is 285,000 euros. Gilliam hired his daughter Amy as the production director. The new story is basically consistent with the final presentation.

But before long, the problem came again. Blanca wanted to take control of the whole project, but gilliam chose to comply, because he saw the former’s successful project in david cronenberg. However, Blanca seems to feel gilliam’s disgust for himself.

Before the Cannes Film Festival in 2016, Amazon decided to quit because Blanca was a producer. The representative said, "We don’t want to communicate with him any more."

Blanca cut the original budget and reduced Palin’s salary to 100 thousand euros, which angered the latter. He also told gilliam that the project needed a real producer and appointed himself as the leader. He tried to replace Palin, give up 35mm equipment and shoot with digital equipment, at the same time threatening gilliam.

Because gilliam did not accept any conditions after the change, the final funds could not be put in place and the project was stagnant. This also led to gilliam’s heart attack.

2017— 2018: After the successful killing, there are twists and turns.

In March 2017, "Who Killed Don Quixote" started shooting again, and the role of Don Quixote was changed to jonathan pryce. He worked with gilliam on Brothers Grimm. As early as 2000, when the project was first launched, Press was one of the cast members. He wanted to play the role of Don Quixote for 15 years.

Gilliam said that the budget of the film was not as much as expected, and the whole crew was very eager to finish it. "It has been too long since I wanted to shoot it in 1989. The experience of thinking, imagining, writing and rewriting is terrible, but the interesting thing about the film is that at some point it has begun to shape itself. This is a very different movie. It seems to be doing my job. I just stick to it until the end. "

On June 4, 2017, "Who Killed Don Quixote" was finally finished after 17 years. In November, gilliam revealed that the editing was about to be completed, but it still needed several months for post-production of visual effects, sound and music.

However, there was an episode in which during the filming in Portugal, the crew was accused of destroying public property, including Christian monasteries. However, gilliam denied these allegations and said that all we did was to protect the building. It was later ruled that it was only responsible for insignificant damage.

What is even more unexpected is that the film is approaching the release and there are twists and turns. Paulo Branco, the former producer, said that the agreement signed with gilliam in 2016 was still valid, and he owned part of the rights and interests. Without his consent, the film could not be released. This lawsuit will affect the screening of Who Killed Don Quixote at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2018.

The final judgment of the case will be announced on June 15th, which was later postponed to 18th. On May 7, a hearing was held on whether the film could go to Cannes, and on May 9, it was allowed to be shown as the closing film at the film festival.

The organizing Committee of the film festival responded by saying, "The film festival is purely about choosing works of art.. First of all, we must reach an agreement with the film director. This is the case here. Past experience has made us aware of the litigation and risks we will face, but when we made this decision, no one objected. "

As the director himself said, "People like Roman ruins because they can’t see them. You can only imagine them."So gilliam always thought that his film would be better than expected. He finally turned his imagination into reality.

Speech by Wen Jiabao and EU leaders when meeting with reporters (full text)

Topic: Wen Jiabao attended the 11th China-EU Leaders’ Meeting.

> > > > Enter the domestic channel.

　　On May 20th, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of the State Council, China met with reporters after holding the 11th China-EU Leaders’ Meeting with Czech President Klaus (centre) and European Commission President Barroso (right), which holds the rotating presidency of the European Union. Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Weishe

　　Xinhuanet Prague, May 20-the State Council’s Prime Minister Wen Jiabao attended the 11th China-EU Leaders’ Meeting in Prague, Czech Republic on the 20th, and after the meeting, he met with reporters together with Czech President Klaus and European Commission President Barroso. The full text of Premier Wen Jiabao’s speech at the meeting with reporters is as follows:

　　Journalists and friends:

　　Good afternoon! Nice to meet you all. This is my second visit to Europe in five months. During the Spring Festival in China in January this year, I visited the EU headquarters and four European countries, and attended the annual meeting in Davos in winter. I noticed that some media called that visit a "journey of confidence". Indeed, what I said most was that in the face of crisis, confidence is more important than gold and currency. An important achievement of that visit was that I agreed with the leaders of the European Union in Brussels to resume the China-EU summit as soon as possible. I flew for ten hours this morning to attend the meeting as scheduled. Because there are still many urgent things to do in China, it will take ten hours to fly back to Beijing at night, and it will take twenty hours on the road. I just said at the beginning of the meeting that I came with sincerity, responsibility and confidence. This is from my heart and is also a real action. China people stress that words must be kept, actions must be carried out, and the friendship between countries ends with faith. I believe that the development of China-EU relations should also abide by this principle.

　　From the inception of the European Community to today, the European Union has 27 member States, and China has always welcomed and supported the construction of European integration. For decades, no matter what difficulties we encounter, China’s position has not changed. Six years ago, China and Europe announced the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership, which is the result of joint efforts of both sides and a solemn commitment to the future and the international community. The development of China-EU relations conforms to the historical trend, meets the needs of the progress of the times, and benefits the Chinese and European people and the whole international community. I would like to mention in particular that the EU is China’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade volume reaching US$ 425.6 billion last year. In the past five years, EU exports to China have increased by more than 20% annually, and China has become one of the most important export markets of the EU in the world. Almost all large enterprises in EU countries have invested in China. They are the beneficiaries of China-EU cooperation and the witnesses of China’s reform and opening up. Both sides should strengthen their confidence, deepen cooperation and continue to move forward hand in hand.

　　At present, there are various opinions about the development prospect and role of China in the world. Here, I want to clarify three points responsibly: First, the basis of China-EU relations is mutual respect and equal treatment, which was, is and will be the case in the future. Second, China has made great achievements in its development, but it is still a developing country. It will take a long time for China to realize modernization, and it will take generations of hard work. Third, China adheres to an independent foreign policy of peace, pursues an open strategy of mutual benefit and win-win, and is willing to develop friendly and cooperative relations with all countries and will never seek hegemony. It is impossible for one or two countries or groups of big countries to solve global problems. Multipolarization and multilateralism are the general trend and the will of the people. Some people say that the world will form a pattern of co-governance between China and the United States, which is groundless and wrong.

　　During the meeting, I pointed out that the core of China-EU relations is strategic and comprehensive, and the key is to keep pace with the times. Under the current complicated and changeable international political and economic situation, China and Europe should adhere to the basic orientation of strategic partners, take expanding pragmatic cooperation as the main line, and focus on keeping pace with the times to promote the comprehensive, in-depth and sustainable development of bilateral relations. To this end, we should give full play to the strategic leading role of the China-EU leaders’ meeting in the development of bilateral relations, and attach importance to and improve the quality and efficiency of the meeting; Give full play to the role of high-level economic and trade dialogue and various consultation mechanisms to promote exchanges and cooperation in various fields; Give full play to the stabilizing role of the legal framework and reach an agreement on the negotiation and signing of the China-EU partnership and cooperation agreement as soon as possible. I emphasize that the most important thing in China-EU strategic cooperation is to adhere to the principles of mutual respect and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, take care of each other’s major concerns, and properly handle sensitive issues, so that the relationship between the two sides will not be affected by one incident. It is hoped that the EU will recognize China’s market economy status as soon as possible and lift the ban on arms sales to China, which is beneficial to the EU and China-EU relations.

　　I exchanged views with the European side on how to deal with the international financial crisis. In dealing with the crisis, China and Europe share the same interests and have a broad consensus. We need Qi Xin to work together to overcome the difficulties and contribute to the early recovery of the world economy. After my visit to Europe in January, China immediately sent a trade and investment promotion delegation to Europe, which produced positive results. I announced that China will send another purchasing delegation to Europe in the near future to increase its imports from Europe. China is willing to further promote mutual investment with the EU, strengthen cooperation in the fields of small and medium-sized enterprises, trade facilitation, science and technology, transportation and postal services, and oppose any form of trade and investment protectionism with practical actions. It is hoped that the EU will relax export restrictions on high-tech products to China, foster new growth points of China-EU economic and trade cooperation, and promote the sustained growth of China-EU trade. China is willing to strengthen dialogue, close communication and coordination with the EU in the fields of macroeconomic policies and finance, and jointly promote progress in the reform of the international financial system. Just now, China and Europe signed three cooperation agreements on energy, science and technology and small and medium-sized enterprises, which are three important areas for deepening mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Europe. Both sides should closely cooperate and earnestly implement them.

　　I gave the European side a comprehensive introduction to China’s policy proposals and specific measures to deal with climate change, stressing that despite the impact of the international financial crisis, the international community’s determination to deal with climate change cannot be shaken and its actions cannot be relaxed. China is willing to work with the European side to adhere to the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" and promote positive results at the Copenhagen conference at the end of the year. I also exchanged views with the European side on energy issues and some international issues.

　　I think the leaders’ meeting is fruitful and has achieved the purpose of enhancing mutual trust, promoting cooperation and deepening relations. The development of China-EU relations reflects the mutually beneficial cooperation between the largest developing country and the largest group of developed countries, the friendly exchanges between the two ancient civilizations, and the frank dialogue between different social systems. Achieving common and harmonious development between China and Europe is fundamentally conducive to the harmonious and sustainable development of the world. This is the common responsibility and mission of China and Europe. China is full of confidence in its own future, the development of the EU and the future of bilateral relations. China is willing to be good friends and partners with the European side, promote development through harmony, seek win-win cooperation and make greater contributions to the cause of human progress.

　　Finally, I would like to thank the Czech side, which holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, for its extensive preparations and warm reception to the Chinese delegation. I look forward to the 12th China-EU Leaders’ Meeting in Beijing at the end of this year.

　　Thank you!