Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing's press conference on Sunday morning, at the Third Session of the 10th National People's Congress (NPC), traced an interesting path. 

As some of the questions he received continued to dwell on the legacy of the Cold War era, there were increasingly questions about China's diverse relations with other countries from the international cooperation in fighting corruption to China's global procurement of energy resources, and Chinese citizens' rights during visits to foreign lands.

The event was a vivid illustration of Foreign Minister Li's everyday portfolio to help China fend off discrimination and misgivings arising from the Cold War on the one hand, while on the other to help the nation's peaceful development by expanding friendly and fruitful ties across the world.

The Cold War has hatched a small profession specializing in churning out allegations about the so-called "China threat," allegedly both as a danger to world peace and the global economy. The trick has been laughably simple just keep recycling the old allegations every time China comes to insist on its own rights. Some of Li's words are a wake-up call. This business has no future.

Where the future will be is reflected by current trends. China has drawn increasing attention to its role in regional business cooperation from neighboring countries. China is becoming one of the world's major trading powers, in fact the largest among the developing countries, both in exports and imports.

In the domestic press, the world is no longer seen as a stage reserved for heads of state and large corporations. The new wealth generated by the nation's last more than 20 years of economic reform has enabled many ordinary citizens to tour European countries like France and Spain.

Overseas trips by students, workers, sales representatives or private investors, tend to cover an even more extensive area than tourists, including virtually every major city in the world. There are already some Chinese companies reporting substantial business volumes from overseas sources.

The Chinese people are proud of the fact that none of these things has been achieved by dispatching a single gunboat, or any attempt to threaten another nation, let alone world peace. So we have good reason to believe we are also entitled not to be asked to compromise our rights.

This is what China means by peaceful development, a task raised by Deng Xiaoping, the late Chinese leader, as he started economic reform. The Chinese people also thank the nation's foreign service for having facilitated our efforts, both corporate and private.

Of course, increasing access to global travel and financial networks does have loopholes. They have been taken advantage of by corrupt individuals, and people engaged in all kinds of illegal trade. At times, Chinese citizens also fall victim to terrorism, criminal assaults, and disasters. As well as a strong defense of our nation's rights, we need a more versatile diplomatic corps.

(China Daily March 7, 2005)