Xi Jinping Replies to Letter from Bangladeshi Girl Alifa Chin

President Xi Jinping replied to a letter from Bangladeshi girl Alifa Chin, encouraging her to study hard, pursue her dream, and carry forward the traditional friendship between China and Bangladesh.

Xi Jinping pointed out that the personal story Chin told in her letter is a vivid example of China-Bangladesh friendship. The people of China and Bangladesh have been good neighbors and good friends since ancient times, with a millennium-year-long history of friendly exchanges. More than 600 years ago, the treasure boats of Zheng He, a Chinese navigator in the Ming Dynasty, visited Bangladesh twice, sowing the seeds of friendship between the people of the two countries. Over 600 years later, China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark sailed to Bangladesh, and a Chinese female military doctor helped Chin's mother get through a dangerous time and give birth to her in Chittagong. Chin's father named her after the Bangladeshi word for China, writing a new touching chapter of the China-Bangladesh friendship.

Xi Jinping stressed that he was delighted to learn that Chin wants to be a China-Bangladesh friendship messenger when she grows up and wishes to study at a medical school in China in the future so that she can save lives just like her "Chinese mother". Xi Jinping expressed the hope that Chin will seize the day, study hard to live her dreams, give back to her family and serve her community and motherland. With the International Children's Day approaching, President Xi wished Chin good health, family happiness and progress in her studies.

In 2010, Alifa Chin was born to a mother who had a difficult labor with her life in danger due to severe heart disease. China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark, which was visiting Chittagong, Bangladesh at that time, sent doctors to the local hospital immediately after receiving a call for help. The doctors performed an intense C-section to ensure the safety of the mother and the baby. To express his gratitude, the father named the baby "Chin", which means "China" in Bengali.