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The CPAFFC delegation headed by its Vice President Li Xiaolin was invited to attend the 20th Annual Convention of the U.S.-China Peoples Friendship Association (USCPFA) in Schenectady， New York State from October 7 to 10， 2005. Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong to the U.S. and Consul General Kuang Weisen in New York attended the convention. Ambassador Zhou delivered a key-note speech， Vice President Li and Chen Longxing， deputy secretary-general of Shanghai Municipal People’s Friendship Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries also made speeches. U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton， Representative John Sweeney and New York State Representative Hugh Farley as well as Gerald Jennings， Mayor of Albany， New York State sent messages of congratulation to the convention. Robert Sanborn and Dee Saul were elected the new president and treasurer of the USCPFA.During the convention， Vice President Li had a working session with leaders of the USCPFA， and reached agreement on future exchanges between the two organizations.

Founded in 1974， the USCPFA has 46 chapters in eastern， southern， midwestern and western regions with 1，500 members. Recently， Birmingham Chapter in the State of Alabama was added. About 100 members from the 4 regions participated in the convention. With “Building Bridges” as its theme， it held 18 sessions. Quite a number of experts and scholars， especially those of Chinese descent briefed on China’s economic development， environmental protection， traditional culture， arts， Chinese language， adoption of Chinese children， etc. which aroused great interest among the participants. A TV Documentary The Story of A Beijinger: A Chinese Correspondent and His American Friends， a joint production of the US-China Cultural Exchange Society and USCPFA， was shown during the convention， which reflected the friendship forged between the Chinese and American people through the personal experience of Zhang Yan， the first correspondent of People’s Daily in the U.S.

In his speech at the luncheon after the opening session， Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong expressed that the Chinese Embassy would， as always， unswervingly support the activities of the USCPFA. He said that the constructive and cooperative relationship between the two countries is based on the mutual interests of the two sides. China and the U.S. need to cooperate in anti-terrorism， nuclear non-proliferation， Six-party Talks on Korean nuclear issue， prevention of epidemic diseases， etc. China would continue to do its utmost to help U.S. reduce its trade deficits and hopes that the U.S. would also ease its restrictions on the exports of high-tech products to China on the basis of mutual benefit. He also reiterated the position of the Chinese government on the Taiwan question， religion and human rights.

Vice President Li Xiaolin extended her congratulation to the Convention on behalf of the CPAFFC and its President Chen Haosu. She expressed her sympathy for the victims of the recent hurricanes in the southern areas of the U.S. and announced the CPAFFC’s donation of 10，000 USD to the disaster-stricken areas. She also talked about what the CPAFFC had done through the sister city channels. She spoke highly of the contributions the USCPFA has made to promoting friendship and understanding between the two peoples over the years and expressed her sincere thanks to Mrs. Barbara Harrison who had been national president of the USCPFA for 14 years and would soon leave her post. She said that we would still regard Mrs. Harrison as our most reliable friend and keep our friendship with her though she would no longer be in that post. Vice President Li also made a brief account of the work done by the CPAFFC in 2005 and expressed her wish to have exchanges and cooperation with the USCPFA in more fields. She believed that difficulties could be overcome and the cause of people-to-people friendship between the two countries would further develop through our joint efforts.

President Harrison handed to Vice President Li a letter of thanks from the USCPFA to CPAFFC President Chen Haosu for CPAFFC’s donation on the hurricane disaster and expressed her gratitude to the vice president for coming to attend their convention.

At the dinner party on the eve of the conclusion of the convention， the USCPFA held a grand ceremony awarding its national board members and regional leaders.As a special guest， Vice President Li Xiaolin presented a certificate of merit to Mrs. Barbara Harrison.

The next USCPFA Convention will be held in Sarasota， Florida in 2007.