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                                                                    Exhibit 4.17

                              [English Translation]

             AGREEMENT ON THE CONFIRMATION OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS

         This Agreement on the Confirmation of Rights and Obligations (the
"Agreement") is entered into by and between the following two parties on May 15,
2002 in Hubei, the People's Republic of China (the "PRC"):

1.       HUBEI MOBILE COMMUNICATION COMPANY LIMITED, a limited liability company
         duly established and in good standing under the laws of the PRC, with
         its legal address at 10 Jiang Xin Road, Jiang Han District, Wuhan,
         Hubei Province, the PRC ("Hubei Mobile"); and

2.       HUBEI COMMUNICATION SERVICE COMPANY, a state-owned enterprise duly
         established and in good standing under the laws of the PRC, with its
         legal address at 10 Jiang Xin Road, Jiang Han District, Wuhan, Hubei
         Province, the PRC (the "Service Company").

WHEREAS:

1.       Hubei Mobile and the Service Company entered into the Assets Injection
         Agreement with China Mobile Communications Corporation ("CMCC") on May
         15, 2002.

2.       In accordance with the Asset Injection Agreement, CMCC will, in the
         name of CMCC, inject the mobile communication business and related
         assets in Hubei Province formerly operated and managed by the Service
         Company into Hubei Mobile.

THEREFORE, in order to confirm the ownership of the interests, assets,
liabilities, personnel and services under the Asset Injection Agreement, the
parties have reached the following agreement:

ARTICLE ONE             CONFIRMATION OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS RELATED TO THE
                        ASSETS INJECTION

1.1      Each party hereby confirms to the other party that all the Related
         Assets, Related Liabilities, Related Personnel and Related Services
         under the Asset Injection Agreement (defined in the Asset Injection
         Agreement,) shall be owned or assumed by Hubei Mobile; accordingly, the
         Service Company enjoys no rights, undertakes no liability and bears no
         expense with regard to the same (unless otherwise agreed upon in this
         Agreement).

1.2      Each party hereby confirms to the other party that, except the Related
         Assets, Related Liabilities, Related Personnel and Related Services
         under the Asset Injection Agreement, all the other services, assets,
         liabilities and personnel (including, but not limited to, all the real
         estate, non-mobile assets and personnel, non-mobile communications
         long-term investments and non-mobile communications liabilities)
         formerly operated and managed by the Service Company shall still be
         owned or assumed by the Service Company; and accordingly, Hubei Mobile
         enjoys no rights, undertakes no liability and bears no expense with
         regard to the same.

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ARTICLE TWO             CONFIRMATION OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS RELATED TO
                        CONTRACTS

Each party hereby confirms to the other party that all the contracts in relation
to the Related Assets, the Related Liabilities, the Related Personnel and the
Related Services under the Asset Injection Agreement shall be transferred to
Hubei Mobile. However, due to the time limit and the enormous amount involved,
the official transfer of certain contracts to Hubei Mobile may have not been
approved by the other party/parties thereto (the "Non-Transferred Contracts").
For such Non-Transferred Contracts, the parties hereby agree and confirm as
follows:

2.1      As of the Effective Date (as defined in the Asset Injection Agreement),
         the rights and liabilities, as well as the gains and losses of the
         Service Company generated from the Non-Transferred Contracts shall
         belong to Hubei Mobile (unless otherwise stipulated in this Agreement
         ), notwithstanding the fact that such Non-Transferred Contracts are
         still held by and performed in the name of the Service Company. The
         Service Company agrees to act as the trustee of Hubei Mobile to receive
         or hold any interests generated from the Non-Transferred Contracts
         (including but not limited to certain goods and loans) on behalf of
         Hubei Mobile, and that such interests are owned by Hubei Mobile. Upon
         demand, the Service Company shall deliver such interests to Hubei
         Mobile;

2.2      The Service Company shall exercise or perform the rights and
         liabilities under the Non-Transferred Contracts strictly in accordance
         with the instructions given by Hubei Mobile from time to time, and
         shall not amend any terms of the Non-Transferred Contracts or terminate
         the same without Hubei Mobile's prior written consent thereto;

2.3      The reasonable expenses incurred by the Service Company for the purpose
         of performing the obligations under the paragraph 2.1 above shall be
         reimbursed by Hubei Mobile, except expenses incurred as a result of
         negligence or misconduct on the part of, or other reasons caused by,
         the Service Company;

2.4      If, as a result of the Service Company's negligence, misconduct or
         other reasons caused by the Service Company in connection with its
         holding or performing the Non-Transferred Contracts in its name and on
         behalf of Hubei Mobile under this Agreement, Hubei Mobile sustains any
         losses therefrom (including but not limited to litigation expenses and
         damages), the Service Company shall sufficiently and timely compensate
         Hubei Mobile for such losses; and

2.5      If there arises such a need that the rights of Hubei Mobile under the
         Non-Transferred Contracts (including the rights to initiate legal
         proceedings or arbitration, or to take other necessary actions) be
         exercised by the Service Company in its name, the Service Company shall
         assist Hubei Mobile by exercising such rights in the Service Company's
         name.

ARTICLE THREE           REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES AND UNDERTAKINGS

3.1      Each party hereto represents, warrants and undertakes to the other
         party that:

     (1)      it is an independent legal person duly established and in good
              standing under the laws of the PRC;

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     (2)      it has all requisite right, authority and power to execute this
              Agreement and perform the responsibilities and obligations under
              this Agreement;

     (3)      Any and all terms and conditions under this Agreement comply with
              its incorporation and charter documents laws and regulations of
              PRC, and any agreement entered into with any third party;

     (4)      The representative to sign this Agreement has been duly
              authorized. This Agreement, upon execution, will constitute legal,
              valid, binding and enforceable obligations of each party.

ARTICLE FOUR            LIABILITIES ARISING FROM BREACH OF CONTRACT

4.1      In case of any breach of the provisions or representations, warranties
         and undertakings under this Agreement, the party that breaches this
         Agreement shall compensate the other party hereto or undertake any and
         all losses, expenses and liabilities arising from the breach of
         contract of the other party, including, but not limited to, the
         relevant legal proceedings or arbitration fees and attorney fees.

ARTICLE FIVE            CONFIDENTIALITY

5.1      Unless stipulated or required by the law or relevant regulatory body,
         any party hereto shall not provide or disclose any information in
         relation to the business and finance of the other party to any entity
         or individual without the prior written consent of the other party.

ARTICLE SIX             FORCE MAJEURE

6.1      In any event of force majeure which is unforeseeable, unavoidable and
         insurmountable as to its happening and consequences, resulting in any
         inability of any party to perform the related obligations hereunder in
         accordance with the agreed conditions of this Agreement, the affected
         party shall immediately notify the other party of such event, and
         provide the other party within fifteen (15) days with valid documents
         of proof evidencing the detailed occurrence of such event, and reasons
         for its inability or delay in performing all or part of such
         obligations under this Agreement. Depending on the extent to which an
         event of force majeure affects the performance of such obligations, the
         parties hereto shall consult each other so as to work out fair and
         reasonable remedies and endeavour to solve the problem.

ARTICLE SEVEN           ASSIGNMENT

7.1      Unless agreed otherwise by the parties, any party shall not assign all
         or part of its rights and obligation hereunder without the prior
         written consent of the other party.

ARTICLE EIGHT           NO WAIVER

8.1      Unless the law states otherwise, any failure to exercise or delay in
         exercising its rights or

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powers by one party hereunder shall not be construed as a waiver of such rights
or powers. Any one time or partial exercise of such rights or powers by one
party shall not affect any further or complete exercise of such rights or
powers.

ARTICLE NINE            SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTE

9.1      Any dispute arising from or in connection with the interpretation or
         performance of this Agreement shall be settled by the parties through
         friendly negotiations conducted among representatives appointed by the
         parties for this purpose. In the case that no resolution is reached
         through consultations within 60 days after the occurrence of such
         dispute, any party may bring an action to a competent people's court
         for its judgment.

ARTICLE TEN             GOVERNING LAW

10.1     This Agreement shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with
         the laws of the PRC.

ARTICLE ELEVEN          NOTICES

11.1     Any notice to be given under this Agreement shall be made in writing
         and sent by mail, telex, telegraph or facsimile to the other party's
         address set out in the front page of this Agreement or to any other
         address as such party may designate in writing from time to time.

11.2     Any notice shall be deemed as having been received at the time of
         delivery if delivered in person; on the date of the receipt if
         delivered by mail; at the time of taking back the receipt if delivered
         by telex; upon delivery if transmitted by facsimile.

ARTICLE TWELVE          EFFECTIVENESS AND MISCELLANEOUS

12.1     This Agreement shall come into effect upon the date when it is executed
         and stamped by the legal persons or authorized representatives of the
         parties.

12.2     Upon the unanimous agreement of the parties hereto, this Agreement may
         be amended or supplemented and any of such amendment or supplement to
         this Agreement shall be effective only if they are in writing and
         executed and stamped by the legal representatives or authorized
         representatives of the parties.

12.3     This Agreement is severable. Should any provision hereof for any reason
         at any time be declared invalid or unenforceable by a competent court,
         the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions herein
         shall remain intact. Under such circumstances, the parties hereto
         shall, on the principle of honesty and trust, consult each other to
         conclude a replacement provision, so as to materialize the purpose of
         the severed provision.

12.4     This Agreement is executed in Chinese in two (2) original counterparts,
         each of which shall be retained by each party hereto. Each counterpart
         is equally effective.

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HUBEI MOBILE COMMUNICATION COMPANY LIMITED

By: /s/ CHEN Nanjian
    -------------------------------------------------
    Legal Representative or Authorized Representative

HUBEI COMMUNICATION SERVICE COMPANY

By: /s/ MAO Xinping
    -------------------------------------------------
    Legal Representative or Authorized Representative

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