中國前國務院總理朱鎔基於週三在北京因病逝世，享年97歲。他在1998年至2003年擔任總理期間，帶領中國度過了1997年亞洲金融危機，並成功推動中國加入世界貿易組織，為中國經濟的崛起奠定了基礎。

朱鎔基以大刀闊斧的經濟改革聞名。他對國有企業進行了徹底重組，關閉了大量低效企業以解決債務問題，同時大力推動私營部門的發展，並設立資產管理公司以清理銀行不良貸款，使中國銀行業得以上市並更加市場化。

在政治與個人特質上，他強調政府官員必須敢於講真話和承擔重任，並積極推動反腐敗與精簡官僚機構的行動。他在外交場合展現出流利的英語與幽默感，卸任後則致力於提升母校清華大學的國際地位及資助鄉村教育。

Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji died of an illness in Beijing on Wednesday at the age of 97. During his tenure as premier from 1998 to 2003, he guided China through the 1997 Asian financial crisis and successfully engineered the country's entry into the World Trade Organization, laying the foundation for its economic rise.

Zhu was renowned for his bold and sweeping economic reforms. He overhauled state-owned enterprises by shutting down inefficient companies to address mounting debt, promoted the growth of the private sector, and established asset-management firms to clear bad loans from banks, enabling them to go public and become more market-oriented.

Personally and politically, he emphasized that government officials must dare to speak the truth and take on heavy responsibilities while actively leading anti-corruption campaigns and efforts to trim government bureaucracy. He impressed foreign leaders with his fluent English and sense of humor, and spent his post-retirement years elevating the international stature of his alma mater, Tsinghua University, and funding rural education.