Warm ties between countries mean no loss in translation

When I was given the assignment of arranging interviews with officials and organizations related to China in Moscow, what struck me first was worry, instead of the excitement I usually feel when going abroad.

   I had been warned by some friends how difficult it is for a Chinese reporter, who cannot speak a word of Russian, to seek an interview with high-ranking officials, or even to ask people for directions.

However, my experience in the past week turned out to be totally the opposite.

From a highly efficient response from the Russian Foreign Ministry, and friendly conversations with Russian people, I began to see the ingrained connection between the two countries and the strong desire among their peoples to further strengthen such ties.

Just by sending a few e-mails and making a single phone call to the Russian Foreign Ministry, I secured an interview with Andrey Denisov, the country's first deputy minister of foreign affairs.

During the one-hour interview at the landmark building housing the Foreign Ministry, the veteran diplomat recalled his experience in China - generally speaking in English and occasionally in Chinese - since he first arrived in China in the 1970s.

Denisov witnessed the launch of Chinese reform and opening-up policies, several historic visits by Russian leaders to China, and was one of the first readers of China Daily, which was established in 1981.

He conversed fluently about Chinese classical and contemporary literature, as well as handwritten Chinese poems with traditional Chinese characters.

"I am one of those people here who likes China, not just because it is my profession, but simply because it is part of life," he said.

Away from the Foreign Ministry, I met Zhang Qi, a Chinese taxi driver who has been working in Moscow for more than a decade, who said Chinese tend to have a fixed mindset.

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