On April 6, H.E. Mr. ZHANG Jun, Ambassador of China to the Netherlands and H.E. Mr. Heemskerk, Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade jointly unveiled the Marquette of the Dutch pavilion to the 2010 Shanghai Expo Happy Street at Madurodam.

Ambassador ZHANG congratulated the Dutch government and the Dutch people for their marvelous design and preparation for the Shanghai Expo. He said that Happy Street not only embodied the wisdom, creativity and innovation of the Dutch people, but also demonstrated their strong desire for a happy and peaceful life. There is no doubt that the real Happy Street will become one of the most attractive and popular pavilions when the Shanghai Expo opens next year. As the first developing country to host the Expo, China is making every effort to present to the world a successful, splendid and unforgettable exposition. The Expo belongs to the whole world too. Altogether 231 nations, international organizations and entities will take part in the exhibition and more than 70 million visitors will be attracted to Shanghai. The Expo will not only be an exhibition of wisdom, innovation and creativity, but also a golden opportunity for promoting cross-culture dialogue, mutual understanding and international cooperation. Especially at the current circumstances when the world is faced with financial and economic crisis, a successful Expo will greatly boost people’s confidence, which is extremely important in fighting against the crisis and rejuvenating the world economy.

Ambassador ZHANG said that even though China suffered heavily from the crisis, the fundamentals of China’s economy is still in good shape. In tackling the crisis, China has taken prompt，strong and effective measures. The Chinese government is fully confident in overcoming the current difficulties, we are also full of confidence in hosting a successful Expo. With the gradual recovery of the Chinese economy, China hopes that the Netherlands will continue to benefit from the development of China, the two countries will continue to play a leading role in promoting free trade, reforming the international financial institutions and facilitating a long-term sustainable development of the world. China also believes that the Shanghai Expo will create new vitality to the bilateral economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.

Mr. Heemskerk said the Dutch government attached great importance to the Shanghai Expo and has contributed a substantial budget to this enormous event. Happy Street integrated major Dutch highlights in the field of technology, art and culture in this innovative design and hope it would give the Chinese public an excellent impression of the Netherlands. Although the economic crisis had an impact on international trade and investment, he was confident of the future development of the economic and trade ties between the two countries. He also believed that the Shanghai Expo would facilitate the development of Dutch economy and Dutch-China economic relations.

The unveiling ceremony was organized by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs. The governor of the Province of Utrecht Mr. Robbertson, the vice governor of the Province of South Holland Ms. Dwarshuis, the vice mayor of the city of the Hague Mr. Kool and around 150 guests from the cultural, educational, economic and trade circles also participated in the ceremony.