President unveils major steps China will take to support BRI development
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends the opening ceremony of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation and delivers a keynote speech at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct 18, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
China will set up financing windows totaling 700 billion yuan ($95.6 billion) through two development banks to support projects involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), while an additional 80 billion yuan will be injected into the Silk Road Fund to promote BRI cooperation, President Xi Jinping said on Oct 18.
Xi made the remarks in a keynote speech delivered at the opening ceremony of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing. To carry out practical cooperation, he said that the China Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of China will each set up a 350 billion-yuan financing window. “Together, they will support BRI projects on the basis of market and business operation.”
More than 20 heads of state and government and senior government representatives as well as heads of international organizations were present at the event. Xi said that cooperation agreements worth $97.2 billion had been concluded at the CEO Conference held during the forum.
In his speech, Xi called for deepening high-quality Belt and Road cooperation to build an open, inclusive and interconnected world for shared growth, and he warned against “unilateral sanctions, economic coercion and decoupling, and supply chain disruption”.
He announced eight major steps China will take to support joint pursuit of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, including efforts to build a multidimensional Belt and Road connectivity network, support an open world economy, promote green development and advance scientific and technological innovation.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-led BRI.
Xi lauded the development of Belt and Road cooperation in the past decade, saying that a global network of connectivity consisting of economic corridors, international transportation routes and an information highway has boosted the flow of goods, capital, technologies and human resources among countries involved in the BRI.
More than 150 countries and over 30 international organizations have signed Belt and Road cooperation documents. Based on the principle of “planning together, building together and benefiting together”, Belt and Road cooperation has extended from the Eurasian region to Africa and Latin America.
It transcends differences between civilizations, cultures, social systems and stages of development, and has opened up a new path for exchanges and cooperation among countries, Xi said. “Indeed, the BRI represents humanity’s joint pursuit of development for all.”
“We should all treat each other as friends and partners, respect and support each other, and help each other succeed,” he said. “Viewing others’ development as a threat or taking economic interdependence as a risk will not make one’s own life better or speed up one’s development.”
Xi emphasized that the BRI aims to promote connectivity, mutual benefit and common development. “Ideological confrontation, geopolitical rivalry and bloc politics are not a choice for us.”
As part of its efforts to expand opening-up, China will establish pilot zones for Silk Road e-commerce cooperation and enter into free trade agreements and investment protection treaties with more countries, Xi said. “We will remove all restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing sector,” he added.
China will further advance high-standard opening-up in cross-border service trade and investment, expand market access for digital and other products, and deepen reform in areas including State-owned enterprises, the digital economy, intellectual property and government procurement, the president said.
A total of 458 outcomes were delivered during the forum, including a series of international cooperation initiatives and an array of cooperation agreements, according to a statement issued after the event.
On the way forward, the Belt and Road cooperation partners will jointly translate the outcomes into actions and better synergize their respective development plans with the BRI, contributing to world economic recovery and the implementation of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the statement said.
Speaking at a news conference after the forum on Oct 18, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the high-quality development of the BRI in the new stage will undoubtedly create more opportunities for the global economy.
Zhou Jin contributed to this story.
