On 17 February 2015, the 2015 CSSAUK Chinese New Year Gala was held in London by Chinese Students and Scholars Association UK. Ambassador Liu Xiaoming, Madame Hu Pinghua and Minister Counsellor for Education Shen Yang watched the performance with more than 1,200 people including Chinese students, scholars, overseas Chinese, representatives from British educational circles and other guests from all walks of life.

Ambassador Liu gave a warm and energetic speech at the Gala. On behalf of the Chinese Embassy in London, he extended Chinese New Year greetings to all the Chinese students and scholars in the UK and their families. Ambassador Liu, attending the Gala for the fifth consecutive time, mentioned that the changes over the past five years had not only been astounding but had also made everyone feel proud. He noted four significant changes.

First, China is becoming stronger. China has grown from the third largest to the second largest economy, from number two to number one in world trade, and from the fifth to the third largest outward investor in the world. China is comprehensively deepening its reforms and advancing the rule of law. The changes in China have been wide-ranging. The Chinese people have never been as close to the goal of great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as they are today. Second, the cooperation between China and the UK in various fields is getting deeper. As political mutual trust between the two countries increases, dialogue and exchange mechanisms at all levels have been further improved. Both China-UK trade and Chinese investment in the UK have doubled, the number of Confucius institutes has risen from 12 to 25, and the number of Confucius classrooms from 31 to 101. Third, Chinese student community in the UK has grown larger, standing at 150,000 from the previous 120,000. It is the largest international student community in the UK and the second largest Chinese overseas student community in the world. Fourth, this annual Chinese New Year Gala is all the more magnificent. The Ambassador hoped that CSSAUK would continue to act as the nucleus of the Chinese student community, unite the students and provide better services to them.

Ambassador Liu also talked about the significance of 2015, calling it a “big year” for the China-UK relations. In his words, there will be a number of good, happy and significant events, and there will be unprecedented opportunities for the bilateral relations. He hoped and believed that China-UK relations were sure to make greater progress and bear richer fruits in 2015. He encouraged the Chinese students in the UK to make good use of their time and work hard, adhere to their ideals, faith and the love of home and the motherland, and make their own contributions to the realisation of the Chinese dream of great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and development of China-UK relations.

Ambassador Liu’s inspiring speech and high hopes came as an encouragement for the Chinese students to study hard and was greeted with warm applauses from the students. During the intermission, Ambassador Liu met with the representatives of professors, scholars and student leaders of CSSAUK, engaging in warm conversations and having group photos taken with them. The Ambassador inquired about their studies, works and lives in Britain, thanked them for their efforts to promote the exchanges and cooperation between China and the UK, and encouraged them to make greater contribution to bilateral people-to-people exchanges.

Ambassador Liu Taking Group Photo with Representatives of CSSAUK Staff Members, Chinese Students and Scholars

Dr. Qi LI, Chairman of CSSAUK, spoke at the Gala. He expressed thanks to the Chinese Embassy and to people from all walks of life for their support. Chinese students in the UK, he said, should keep up with the trend of the times and adopt a global view. They should study hard to learn new knowledge and acquire new skills so as to be prepared for a successful future career in which they pursue their personal dreams and contribute to the realization of the “Chinese Dream” of the great national rejuvenation.

The Gala offered magnificent performances including majestic martial arts, dazzling traditional dances, miraculous face changing, amazing acrobatics show, hilarious crosstalk, splendid Pipa, piano and Erhu solos, the solo dance What a beautiful red flower and the performance of the “Monkey King” actor Zhang Jinlai. The Gala was both a joyous celebration for the Chinese tradition and a momentous occasion for Chinese overseas students to stay connected with their mother country and to demonstrate their enthusiasm for and conviction about a better future.

Ambassador Liu Taking a Group Photo with the Cast of the CSSAUK Chinese New Year Gala