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Remarks by Ambassador Cui Tiankai at the China-US Dialogue and Screening of "Better Angels"
National Press Club
October 30, 2018
崔天凯大使在中美对话暨《善良的天使》观影活动上的致辞
美国国家新闻俱乐部
2018年10月30日
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Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,
女士们，先生们，
朋友们，
Good evening! It is a very great pleasure for me to be here with all of you, old and new friends, for the screening of "Better Angels". Let me thank the China General Chamber of Commerce-USA for organizing this event. And I want to pay tribute to all the people who have helped to produce this documentary. Your work will shed new light on the theme of today's dialogue: the path forward for China-US relations.
大家晚上好！很高兴参加中美对话暨《善良的天使》观影活动，并在这里见到这么多新老朋友。感谢美国中国总商会组织本次活动，我也向所有为制作这部纪录片付出心血的人士表示敬意，你们的努力将为今天活动的主题——中美关系未来之路提供新的思路。
Many of us are now deeply concerned over some of the recent developments in China-US relations. Under such challenging circumstances, this relationship needs what Abraham Lincoln referred to as the touch "by the better angels of our nature".
许多人对近期中美关系形势深感忧虑。在这充满挑战的时刻，中美关系的发展也许更需要亚伯拉罕•林肯所说的“我们本性中善良的天使”。
But where can we find the better angels? They are right here with us. As you will see, featured in this documentary are not only world leaders who always hold political spotlight, or diplomats who fly across the world. Also highlighted in this documentary, or even more highlighted, are ordinary men and women:
但这些天使何处可寻？他们一直与我们同在。你们会看到，这部纪录片不仅采访了那些备受瞩目的政治领导人，穿梭于世界各地的外交家，也把镜头更多对准了我们身边的普通人：
A former US Marine soldier who teaches English and coaches American football in a Chinese school;
一位在中国学校教英语和橄榄球的美国退役海军陆战队士兵;
A Chinese abacus teacher working in the United States, helping American students with arithmetic;
一位远赴美国帮助美国学生学习算术的中国珠算老师;
And a Chinese entrepreneur who funded the Sino-US Friendship House in Muscatine, Iowa.
一位自掏腰包在艾奥瓦州马斯卡廷建立“中美友谊屋”的中国企业家。
These people and their stories are both ordinary and extraordinary. Ordinary because they are no different from people we see on the streets every day. Yet they are extraordinary, because their stories are excellent examples of how people of two countries with very different cultures have been able to find common ground and get to understand each other, and because they epitomize the ever-growing exchanges and friendship between the Chinese and American peoples.
这些人和他们的故事既平凡又伟大。平凡是因为他们与我们每天在街上看到的人没什么不同。伟大是因为他们的故事很好地展现了两个文化迥异的国家间，人民如何能够找到共同点并相互理解，也因为他们就是中美两国人民不断发展的交流和友谊的缩影。
From these ordinary men and women, we know why the China-US relationship is firmly grounded, and why we should be confident in its future. It is not because they have accomplished a feat never done before; but because of their work day after day, building bridges between the two peoples and contributing to people-to-people ties, that our relations keep forging ahead. They are the "better angels" for our relations.
这些“小人物”的故事让我们看到为何中美关系基础坚实，为何应对其未来充满信心。这并非由于他们有何前无古人之壮举，而是因为他们日复一日，在两国人民间架设桥梁，为人民交往做出贡献，从而使中美关系不断向前。他们就是中美关系中“善良的天使”。
In a couple of months, we will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and the United States. The relationship has come a long way in the past four decades. It has made great strides, while also has had its share of setbacks. But every time it risked being stranded, every time its future was cast into doubt, the people of our two countries would be there, quietly but persistently, doing their part, lifting it out of the quagmire, and moving it forward. And thanks to their unremitting efforts, we have been able to rise above differences and ensure sustained and steady growth of our relations; thanks to their unswerving commitment, we have blazed a trail of win-win cooperation and seen our interests as closely tied as never before.
几个月后，我们将迎来中美建交40周年。过去四十年中，双边关系得到长足发展，硕果累累，却也曾经历不少曲折。每当中美关系遭遇坎坷，前景受到质疑时，两国人民都在那里，默默努力，坚持不懈，贡献自己的力量，推动两国关系走出困境，继续向前。正是因为他们的不懈努力，我们才能弥合分歧，实现两国关系持续稳定发展；正是因为他们的坚定信念，我们才能开辟合作共赢的道路，使两国利益前所未有地紧密相连。
But these days, what has been going on between our two countries has kept many people on tenterhooks. Over the past year we have heard enough of trade war threats, assertions about strategic rivalry, sabre-rattling in the South China Sea and even unfounded accusations against Chinese students and scholars. It looks as if rivalry and confrontation became the prevailing aspect for our path ahead and people cannot but again call for the touch of "better angels". Sometimes we wonder if they have just vanished or if they are overshadowed by the dark side of human nature?
但近来，两国关系的发展形势让许多人感到不安。过去一年，我们听到很多消极声音：贸易战的威胁，主张战略竞争的声音，在南海的武力炫耀，甚至对中国学生和学者的无端指责。竞争和对抗似乎成为我们未来道路的主流，人们不禁要再次呼吁“善良的天使”。有时，我们会想，“善良的天使”是否已经销声匿迹，亦或是否已被人性的阴暗面所掩盖？
I believe that you will arrive at the same conclusion as I did after seeing this documentary: the better angels are still there. They are always there, rain or shine. The ordinary and great people of China and the US are there, doing their part, showing their goodwill, wisdom and magnanimity, and paving the path forward for our relations. When our relations are smooth sailing, they will be there injecting greater driving forces; and when our relations are at a low ebb, it is also our people who will firmly support the bonds of friendship and turn the tide of China-US relations.
观赏完这部纪录片，我相信各位会得出和我一样的结论：“善良的天使”仍然存在。无论晴雨，他们总在那里。平凡而伟大的两国人民各尽其力，展现出友善、智慧和宽容，为中美关系的发展铺平道路。两国关系一帆风顺时，他们为其注入更大动力；而中美关系处于低潮时，他们坚定维系两国友谊，推动两国关系重回正轨。
Therefore, there is no reason why we should not stay optimistic and confident. I am convinced that the better angels in the documentary and among our two peoples will always come to guide us to a better path of the China-US relationship and move it forward for the benefit of our peoples and of the entire international community.
因此，我们没有理由不保持乐观和信心。我坚信，纪录片以及两国人民中“善良的天使”将一直指引中美关系走向更好的未来，造福两国人民和国际社会。
The ancient Chinese philosopher Mencius said that the tendency of man's nature to good is like the tendency of water to flow downwards and that there are none but have this tendency to good, just as all water flows downwards. He also pointed out, however, that men could be made to do what is not good if force is applied to distort their nature.
中国古代哲学家孟子说，“人性之善也，犹水之就下也。人无有不善，水无有不下。”我们要相信，人性是向善的。同时他也指出，“人之可使为不善，其性亦犹是也”。如果本性被扭曲，人们就会被迫去做不好的事情。
Therefore, the task before us now is to make sure that the better angels of our nature will always prevail over any dark force, so that the Chinese and American peoples will together build a strong and lasting friendship between us for the good of mankind. I hope and believe that the documentary we see tonight will be a good source of inspiration for us in this joint endeavor.
因此，我们当前的任务是确保人性中“善良的天使”总是能够战胜阴暗面，使两国人民为了人类的福祉携手共建牢固、持久的友谊。我希望并相信，今晚的纪录片将为我们的共同努力提供很好的启示。
Thank you.
谢谢大家!
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