英闻天下——488 Thatcher "Lays Foundation" of Successful Sino-British Relations

 　　Hong Kong had been a British colony since the middle of the 19th century.

 

　　Negotiations¹ between the British government and the Chinese government began in the early 1980s.

 

　　Thatcher² visited China four times, the first in 1977 as leader of the opposition³.

 

　　During her subsequent visit in 1982, the first to China by a serving British Prime Minister, she met former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.

 

　　The pair discussed the future of Hong Kong.

 

　　During talks, Deng Xiaoping and Thatcher agreed on the "one country, two systems" formula for Hong Kong.

 

　　On December the 19th, 1984, China and Britain signed a Joint⁴ Declaration on the future of the territory, which paved the way for Hong Kong's return to China in 1997.

 

　　Experts from both sides agree that the successful handover of Hong Kong laid a solid foundation for the development of bilateral⁵ relations.

 

　　Former British foreign secretary Geoffrey Howe served under Thatcher at the time of negotiations on the return of Hong Kong to China in the 80's.

 

　　Howe says the achievement of a stable future for Hong Kong was a success for both the Chinese leadership and for Thatcher.

 

　　Feng Zhongping is an expert on European issues at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, he says Thatcher was a realist in terms of Sino-British ties.

 

　　He says although Thatcher was always determined⁶ to stand up for what she regarded as British national interests, she also understood the importance of pragmatism and good relations with China.

 

　　To date, Sino-UK relations have been on good terms since the 1980s.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Shen Chengcheng.

1 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

2 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

5 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

6 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。