The numbers say it all. China expects to have 400 million smartphone users in 2014 and 100 million LTE subscribers by 2016. Billions will be invested the Broadband China strategy aiming to connect 270 million subscribers by 2015.

With that level of scale and investment, footprint is everything. That's why I'm particularly proud of the unique heritage we have in China, with our flagship joint-venture Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell. 30 years ago, Alcatel-Lucent became a real pioneer in China as the first foreign investment joint venture in China's high-tech industry.

Our presence in China was established, not long after France became the first major western power to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.

This week in Paris we are reinforcing our relationship by signing a one-year frame agreement with China Mobile that includes IP networking and 4G-LTE technology, enabling the world's largest mobile service provider to  pave the way for future network functions virtualization and cloud-based services.

The signing coincides with a state visit to France by the President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jingpin, the culmination of various events organized for the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Alcatel-Lucent CEO Michel Combes, French Minister of Foreign Trade Nicole Bricq, Deputy Minister of China's Commerce Ministry Gao Yan, EVP of CMCC Group Li Huidi.

A truly special occasion for China and France described by the Xi Jingpin in the French daily Le Figaro, as a visit with friends not only to reflect on the past but also to build the future and take  relations to a new level, for a 'win win' for all.

As I mentioned before, 2014 is also a special occasion for Alcatel-Lucent as we celebrate 30 years of presence in China. During those years Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell has been a major contributor to China's Telecommunications Industry bringing world-leading technologies and expertise to all the major actors in the country.

In fact as early as 1992, Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell deployed the ever first GSM network in China for the predecessor of China Mobile. Since the creation of China Mobile in 2000, Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell has been a key technology provider in virtually every aspect of its growing mobile networks. We have worked side-by-side with China Mobile throughout many developments in mobile technology, from GSM to 4G TD-LTE. 

We are also a top three supplier to China Telecom's 4G network and have a leading position in the LTE-TDD trial of China Unicom. In IP, we have more than 16% share in the service router market and are among the top three access vendors in China with approximately 20% market share.

The frame agreement we have signed with China Mobile reinforces our relationship and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the Telecommunications Industry in China.

So for Alcatel-Lucent our heritage and presence in China means that we are right at the heart of the deployment of some of the largest and most sophisticated networks in the world.

As we reflect on and celebrate our anniversaries, personally, I can't help but be excited by what the next 30 years have in store for us in China. But I know that Alcatel-Lucent will continue to be a pioneer and cement our roots in China and we will continue to be at the forefront of the technological development of the country. And that makes me proud.

In the meantime, happy anniversary, France, China and Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell !

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