Shanghai Expo pavilion success heralds better Sino-UK ties

LONDON - The Shanghai Expo is a testament to the close partnership China shares with the United Kingdom, according to the Chinese ambassador to the UK.

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"The China-UK cooperation is off to a renewed start and is on the fast track. Our relationship promises many more opportunities and new progress," Liu Xiaoming said at the Royal Botanic Gardens on Tuesday night.

The first official visit to China by Prime Minister David Cameron early next month will also "take our relations to a new level", he added.

The British government and the British people have shown a keen interest in the Shanghai Expo, and the distinctive UK Pavilion has become a sensation among Chinese visitors, Liu said.

The UK Pavilion has been the busiest of all the European pavilions, with more than 7 million visitors. The Zero-Carbon and Liverpool Pavilions, in addition, are also very popular in the Expo.

As the Shanghai Expo draws to a close, the EXPO NOW Photo Exhibition, hosted by the Chinese embassy since June, is also about to complete its mission in the UK.

About 100 Expo photos have been on display in London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Liverpool, enabling British people who have not been to Shanghai to get the flavor and excitement of the Expo.

Liu added that he was glad to see the exhibition attracting tens of thousands of visitors in the UK.

The sentiments of Liu's speech were echoed by UK officials.

"I hope the success of the British contribution to the Shanghai Expo will become a symbol which embodies the determination that the UK and China have to become partners devoted to economic growth," said Mark Prisk, British business and enterprise minister of state.

British Prime Minister David Cameron also hopes his visit to China can forge closer cooperation between the two countries, Prisk added.

Thomas Heatherwick, the designer of the UK Pavilion, said he is delighted that the pavilion has attracted so many visitors and become a new symbol for the UK.

"It's amazing," Heatherwick told China Daily with a broad smile, adding that the success of the UK Pavilion is the accomplishment of UK-China cooperation.

He also offered thanks to the Chinese government for giving him the opportunity to offer his creation and thanked the British government for accepting his design to represent the UK.