Five years ago, I took part in another English speech contest, which I thought was almost impossible to have a buzz. I was 18 years old and represented China in the World English Speech Contest in London. At that time, there were more than 2 spectators in the audience, including more than 1 contestants from 49 countries and their relatives and friends. Then I looked at the audience with different skin colors, nationalities, religious beliefs, cultural backgrounds and everything, and I was very uneasy. I just wanted to say what I said and what I said would make them all feel that what I said was a little reasonable.
I later told a story about Genghis Khan. We all know that Genghis Khan is a great hero, but this time I didn't say that he was a hero. I said that he faced a family crisis as a husband and father. Genghis Khan fought abroad for years. Once he went out to fight and returned to the tribe several months later. People in the tribe told him that his wife might be having an affair with someone else and that his favorite son might not be his own.
As a king, I think Genghis Khan has a thousand ways to find out the truth and safeguard his dignity. But this time he did nothing. He chose to be an ordinary husband and father. He loves his wife even more. He cultivates his son face to face in front of many people. I don't question whether the child is my own. I cherish this family. Please cherish and protect them. Finally, the rumors died down and the tribe returned to peace.
After I finished this story, a Belgian player came up to me and told me that I liked your speech very much, because I thought of my father in your speech, and I thought about what kind of husband and father I would be in the future. You see, we are here today. You represent China and I represent Belgium. There are still so many diplomats sent by our country sitting under the stage to watch the war. They all want to see us compete with the proudest story of our nation and the best value to win the championship. However, your story made me realize that before representing the country as a contestant, we all had the most important identity. We are human beings, children of today, fathers and mothers of tomorrow. This identity is a kind of human nature between you and me, and all our contestants. This human nature can sometimes play a greater role, and it will turn some cold and seemingly hopeless moments around.
In Vienna in June 215, the United States was leading a nuclear negotiation on restricting Iran's possession and use of nuclear weapons. At that time, it was impossible to talk about it at all, because Iran refused whatever conditions the United States proposed, and then the United States kept revising it, and Iran kept opposing it for 18 days. Negotiators from all countries are trapped in the Marriott Hotel and conference room in Vienna. A few months later, Ms. Wendy Sherman, then the chief negotiator of the United States and their deputy secretary of state, came to a class in our college and talked about that dark 18 days.
She said that this Iranian is so difficult to deal with. I almost didn't have the courage to talk at all in the end, because there are so many years of resentment and suspicion between our two countries, and there is no basis for trust. This negotiation is impossible. It's just a coincidence that one thing happened in those 18 days, that is, my granddaughter and the grandson of the other Iranian chief negotiation area were born in those 18 days. We both became grandparents for the first time in those 18 days, and we couldn't help sharing the video of the granddaughter on our mobile phone with each other. At that time, I saw such a scene in my mind. In a tense situation, a white-haired middle eastern grandfather and a white-haired grandmother were behind each other, which was a feud between countries for decades. But at that moment, they lowered their heads at the same time, then extended their heads to look at the photos and videos of the baby on each other's mobile phones, and then they were really cute.
At that moment, there was a connection between the two negotiators. As grandparents' feelings, it actually melted everyone's nervous nerves and made everyone feel a glimmer of hope in extreme fatigue and distrust. Because the other person is a human being, just like us. Since they are both human beings, there is still room for further communication, and there will be the possibility of mutual understanding. Let's work harder for this possibility. As a result of this effort, on July 14th, 215, the Iranian nuclear agreement was formally reached, the international nuclear non-proliferation system was once again safeguarded, and the peace and prosperity of the Middle East and the whole world were once again protected.
The contestants in the speech contest in the same room overcame their prejudice or resistance to each other's values, and cheered for their opponents in a story about their father. The kindness of both sides who were grandparents at the deadlock in the negotiation made people drop their guard for an instant, even if that guard was dropped for only one second. At this time, I can't help thinking that we always say that things are different. We say that this country is so different from country to country, from culture to culture, from crowd to crowd. However, will there be something whose core will always be interlinked between seemingly the most different and even the most antagonistic cultures? As long as we mention that interlinked thing every time, the tough negotiators will instantly become soft, and the contestants who are nervous in the speech contest will instantly become peaceful. That thing is called human nature, and that thing is called humanity.
We are used to saying that international events are far away from each of us. Because we are ordinary people, it may not be our turn to win glory for our country, to formulate policies, to negotiate and mediate, so how do we understand the world, is it important? Important. Because every international situation, every international event, it has never been driven by a group of robots. It is just a group of ordinary people like us who are writing history and participating in it. They may be contestants who represent all countries in the speech contest. They came to the competition with a desire to carry forward the proudest values of their own nation, but they learned to cheer for their opponents in a story about fatherly love and family. They may be originally tense negotiators, but they are also grandparents, so that kind of * * * kindness can let them put down their guard for a second.
In today's peaceful times, the world's good or bad is definitely not decided on the battlefield, but it is not just decided on the negotiation floor, leaders' summit or the podium of the United Nations as we do. In fact, it is determined by the views of every one of you and me, every ordinary China person, every ordinary foreigner, and every ordinary person on the world, because every bit of our thoughts is shaping our domestic public opinion. Our attitude towards the world shows the direction of popular culture, and how to understand others, other countries and opponents is the mind and responsibility that every country, big or small, should have.
how you choose to understand the world will be what it is, and how you choose to expect human nature will be what the future of mankind will be. thank you