
Investment, help with efforts for cross-Straits unification are urged

Premier Li Keqiang meets with representatives participating in the eighth Conference for Friendship of Overseas Chinese Associations in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday. WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY
Premier Li Keqiang has called on overseas Chinese to invest steadily in China and contribute to cross-Straits unification.
"Overseas Chinese are welcome to invest and start their businesses in the motherland, as China is shifting from reliance on natural resources to human resources and promoting innovative industries," he said.
He made the remarks on Thursday when meeting more than 700 participants from 136 countries and regions.
They were attending the eighth Conference for Friendship of Overseas Chinese Associations, hosted by the State Council's Overseas Chinese Affairs Office. The office has held seven conferences since 2001, extending its gratitude to more than 60 million overseas Chinese worldwide.
Li said the Chinese mainland and Taiwan belong to one country, and he hoped overseas Chinese would continuously support and make their own contributions to national unification.
Addressing the participants at the Great Hall of the People, Li said, "For a long time, overseas Chinese have made great achievements in their own fields and crucial contributions to China's economic and social development, and I hope you will continue to do so."
However, facing international and domestic challenges, China has to cultivate new economies by deepening reforms and promoting innovation to achieve medium- to high-speed growth.
"China is still one of the most attractive destinations for investments, and overseas Chinese are welcome to invest in these new areas," he said.
One of the participants was He Ruyi, director of the China-US Cultural Exchanges Center and an organizer of the welcoming ceremony in Washington for President Xi Jinping when he paid a state visit to the United States in September.
Born in Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province, He left for Maryland in 1988 and now works for the US Food and Drug Administration's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.
"Today, we have so many compatriots coming together and received by the premier. It was encouraging to see him, showing the importance the Chinese government attaches to us," He said.
French girl ties the knot with Chinese boy
Beijing Style: ready for bare legs
Century-old station sees railyway evolution
Enthusiasts perform Kung Fu at Wudang Mountain
Stunning photos of China's fighter jets in drill
Monk's mummified body to be made into a gold Buddha statue
Former Chinese solider of the French Foreign Legion seeks wife online
Asia's longest and highest suspension bridge to open to traffic
China's first interactive robot looks like a beauty
Top 20 hottest women in the world in 2014
Top 10 hardest languages to learn
10 Chinese female stars with most beautiful faces
China’s Top 10 Unique Bridges, Highways and Roads
Art not porn
Congestion fee needs careful deliberation
Beijing policemen probed for man’s death
Why does China get carte blanche for its insensitivityDay|Week