Remarks by Reta Jo Lewis
Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs
at 2012 China International Friendship Cities Conference
Chengdu, China
September 12, 2012
美国国务院全球政府间事务特别代表雷塔•乔•刘易斯在中国国际友好城市会议上的讲话
中国成都
2012年9月12日
Thank you for that kind introduction.
谢谢您的热情介绍。
Good morning distinguished Madam Li and guests. I would like to express my appreciation to the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the Chengdu Municipal government for hosting us today at the 2012 China International Friendship Cities Conference.
尊敬的李女士及各位来宾，你们好。我谨在此感谢中国人民对外友好协会和成都市政府今天在这里主办2012年中国国际友好城市会议。
Let me extend a special recognition to Mary Kane, president and CEO of Sister Cities International, and Laurel Pressing, mayor of Urbana, Illinois. We are delighted that you are here with us today.
我要特别感谢国际姐妹城市协会的会长兼首席执行官玛丽·凯恩和伊利诺伊州厄巴纳市市长劳雷尔·普莱星。你们能够参加今天的会议，我们感到十分高兴。
I would like to take a moment to express my condolences to the people of Yunnan and Guizhou provinces who experienced a series of earthquakes last Friday. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time.
我希望占用一点时间向上个星期五经历了一连串地震的云南和贵州两省的人民表示慰唁。在这个困难的时刻，我们向你们寄送我们的哀思，并且为你们祈祷。
When we speak about our countries, it is easy to fall into the habit of talking about our capital cities. When we say that “Beijing” and “Washington, DC” are working together, we typically mean the countries as a whole.
当我们讲到我们的国家时，常常会以我们的首都为代表。当我们说“北京”和“华盛顿”相互协作时，我们通常指的是两个国家。
We all know, however, that the work of nations also takes place at the subnational level – the states, the provinces, and the cities.
但是，众所周知，国家所做的工作也有地方上的参与——州/省和城市。
As the Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs, I am proud to be here to say that both “Washington, DC” and America’s subnational governments are interested in fostering better relations with China’s provinces and cities.
作为美国国务院全球政府间事务特别代表，今天我可以在这里自豪地说，“华盛顿”和美国的地方政府都希望和中国的省市建立更好的关系。
One of the real highlights for me during my two and a half years as Special Representative has been the development of the U.S.-China subnational initiative. Secretary Clinton and Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) supporting U.S.-China subnational cooperation on January 19, 2011.
在我担任特别代表的两年半时间里，对我来说最重要的事情之一就是制定了美中两国基层交流行动计划。克林顿国务卿和杨洁篪外长在2011年1月19日签署了支持美中基层合作的《谅解备忘录》。
