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4. Turning to economic cooperation between Britain and China, Hu Yaobang said he had checked the figures for last year on the volume of trade between China and Britain:
Yuan
1.5 billion, which was one thirtieth or about 4% of China's total foreign trade. The Prime Minister said there was scope for expansion. Hu Yaobang agreed. The Prime Minister said Britain was hoping to send a trade delegation to China next March. She was sure both countries would make renewed efforts to increase trade. Britain would keep up to date with China's modernisation programme and plans so as to be able to pay attention to areas of special British expertise. Hu Yaobang said the most important areas for China were energy, transportation and new technologies. China planned to increase her volume of foreign trade by over 30% next year.
Both he and Premier Zhao would be involved in the visit in March of the British trade delegation. Both Britain and China had their own strong points. The two sides should pursue the principle of equality and mutual benefit. So long as they did so the prospects for economic and trade relations were bright.
5. The Prime Minister asked if Hu could tell her something about domestic plans for China. Hu Yaobang said all was well in China. There were currently three main domestic tasks. Firstly, reform of the economy. Suggestions had been made in this context that China was abandoning socialism. China would never do so. But China had to embark on a road with Chinese characteristics. The Chinese were making efforts to blaze a new path that would lift China out of the state characterised by backward economic management, low productivity and a backward system of distribution. In the resolution that had been recently adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the Twelfth Central Committee it was stated that China would fulfil this task in the next five years.
It was in fact likely to be fulfilled in the main in three years time. He did not expect great confusion would be created as a result. Some minor errors might be made but great attention would be paid to the task in order to avoid them, so that the momentum of economic development could be maintained and in the coming decade China would be able to double her national output. The Prime Minister remarked that it was a very ambitious target, but no doubt it could be reached. Chinese people were renowned for their resourcefulness, nevertheless no country had as many people as China, which was a very great problem in itself. Hu Yaobang said the Chinese people were working hard and single-mindedly towards modernisation. Secondly, China was making determined efforts to continue to pursue the policy of opening to the outside world. Thirdly, during the course of Party rectification,
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