简体中文
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has congratulated Xinhua, China's official news agency, on its upcoming 85th anniversary.
In a message Wednesday addressed to Xinhua President Cai Mingzhao, Bachelet expressed her "sincerest congratulations to all the men and women that work at the Xinhua News Agency, on its 85th anniversary."
"The Xinhua News Agency has served as a bridge of understanding, cooperation and friendship between Chile and China, as well as between Latin America and China, thanks to its international influence as an omnimedia conglomerate," Bachelet added.
The Chilean president praised the Chile-China ties, underscoring the fact that Chile was the first South American country to establish diplomatic relations with China, the first Latin American country to recognize China's status as a market economy, and the first Latin American country to sign a free trade agreement with the Asian giant.
"Today, China has positioned itself as our largest trade partner worldwide, our leading source of imports and the leading destination for our exports," said Bachelet.
"Throughout the process of developing ties, the value of media such as Xinhua has stood out," said the president, adding the news agency "has in addition to seriously fulfilling its informative task, become an important and indispensable force in promoting the strategic partnership between Chile and China."
The Xinhua News Agency was born on Nov. 7, 1931 as the Red China News Agency in Ruijin in southeast China. It changed to its current name in January 1937 in Yan'an in northwest China.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Xinhua became the state news agency.
With 85 years of development, Xinhua now operates more than 30 domestic bureaus and 180 overseas bureaus and branches worldwide.
(APD)
