At the invitation of His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, I will soon pay a state visit to Malaysia. This will be my second visit to your beautiful country in 12 years. I look forward to experiencing Malaysia's remarkable progress and transformation in person, and meeting with Malaysian friends to celebrate our friendship and plan for future cooperation.
China and Malaysia are friendly neighbors across the sea. The maritime Silk Road stood witness to the millenium-old friendly exchanges between our countries. As a Malay proverb puts it, air dicincang tidak akan putus, or "water can't be cut apart." Through the ages, such strong bonds of friendship between our peoples have grown from strength to strength. Over 1,300 years ago, Chinese Buddhist monk Yijing (636-713) of the Tang Dynasty travelled to the Malay Peninsula on his pilgrimage voyage and produced the earliest known written account of the ancient kingdom of Kedah. More than 600 years ago, Chinese navigator and explorer Zheng He (1371-1433) of the Ming Dynasty and his fleet called at Malacca during five of his seven historic expeditions. His visits planted seeds of peace and friendship. To this day, the Sam Po Kong Temple, Bukit Cina, and Princess Hang Li Poh's Well endure as a living testament to the local community's everlasting veneration of the legendary Chinese navigator. Some 80 years ago, when the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression reached a critical juncture, the Nanyang Volunteer Drivers and Mechanics from Malaysia braved immense dangers to reach China's Yunnan Province, and helped keep the Burma Road operational, as it was a vital lifeline of China's wartime supplies. Today this remarkable story of courage still echoes in the hearts of both peoples. As we honor our shared past and embrace the future, our two countries must work together to give fresh momentum to our ship of friendship that has sailed through the long river of history, and ensure that it forges ahead steadily toward brighter horizons.
