1、Visiting Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie has taken time to meet the representatives of the Flying Tigers who had fought with the Chinese during the war against Japanese aggression more than 70 years ago.Our Washington chief correspondent Xiao Hong has the story.It was a heart-touching moment
2、 when the Chinese Defense Minister greeted the old friends of China and brought back vivid memories of the US pilots fighting with the Chinese people against the Japanese invaders more than 70 years ago.Minister Liang Guanglie told the American friends that the story of the Hump pilots has been writ
3、ten into textbooks and its nickname the flying tigers has become a household name to many Chinese.During our conversation just now, we recalled the cooperation between the two countries during the war against Japanese aggression. This showed that the exchanges, friendship and cooperation of our two
4、nations and two armies started very early.Jay Vinyard, one of the veteran pilots of the Hump Route, recalled his encounters with the local Chinese people during the war time.I remember the people we dealt with at the airport always smile when we come in and they were always saying Dinghao. They seem
5、ed to be very happy to see us and have us on their side.The US pilots joined their Chinese counterparts in the fight against the Japanese invaders during the World War Two. They destroyed a total of 2600 Japanese warplanes and established the famous Hump Route, a high-altitude air route between Chin
6、a, Myanmar and India, to provide supplies to the US and Chinese armies.To honor the contribution and sacrifice of the US soldiers during the war, several monuments and museums were set up by local governments in Yunnan Province and Chongqing Municipality.Nell Calloway, grand-daughter of the late Lie
7、utenant General Claire Lee Chenault who was the founding father of the Flying Tigers, paid several visits to these places and was very impressed.Well, I think there is a saying that people with no past have no future. And I think if we dont remember our past and we dont honor that past, then we dont
8、 have a very good future.Ms. Calloway is the director of the Chenault Aviation and Military Museum in Luoisiana and believes the exhibits at the Museum will provide a good opportunity for young generations to learn the history with eyes open for the future.I think the relationship between the United
9、 States and China right now is the most important relationship in our world today. And so, for us to remember this past, and remember what the Americans and the Chinese were able to do to defeat the Japanese, maybe we can form that bridge to learn how to have better cooperation for a better future.Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie says the long cherished friendship between the two peoples has laid a solid foundation for future development. He hopes such a friendship and cooperation will be carried on by future generations.Xiaohong, CRI News, Washington.
