一 中国对外关系与贸易史上之转折点 中国既是亚洲东部大陆大国,也是太平洋西岸海岸古国。早在上古就发生民间海上交通与贸易,到了西汉,中央政府也直接派官吏进行较大规模的海外贸易,标志着海外贸易正式成立,包 China’s turning point in the history of foreign relations and trade China is both a big mainland continent in eastern Asia and the ancient coast of the Pacific West Coast. As early as in ancient times, civil maritime traffic and trade took place. In the Western Han Dynasty, the Central Government directly sent officials to conduct larger-scale overseas trade, marking the formal establishment of overseas trade, including the