Xi says BRI a public road open to all, not private path

BOAO, China, April 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from chinadaily.com.cn:

President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2021 via video link on Tuesday and delivered the keynote speech. Here are some highlights from his address.

On Belt and Road Initiative

- The Belt and Road Initiative is a public road open to all, not a private path owned by one single party.

- China will expand cooperation with various parties in infectious disease control, public health, traditional medicine and other areas.

- China will work with all sides to promote "hard connectivity" of infrastructure and "soft connectivity" of rules and standards in an effort to build a closer partnership for connectivity.

- Efforts should be made to strengthen cooperation on green infrastructure, green energy and green finance.

- China will work with all willing participants to build the Belt and Road Initiative into a pathway to poverty alleviation and growth.

On multilateralism

- Justice, not hegemony, needed in the world.

- World affairs should be handled through extensive consultation, and the future of the world should be decided by all countries working together.

- We must not let the rules set by one or a few countries be imposed on others, or allow unilateralism pursued by certain countries to set the pace for the whole world.

- Big countries should behave in a manner befitting their status and with a greater sense of responsibility.

- We should follow the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, and uphold true multilateralism.

On open world economy

- In the age of economic globalization, attempts to "erect walls" or "decouple" run counter to the law of economics and market principles, and would hurt others' interests without benefiting oneself.

- Openness is essential for development and progress, and holds the key to post-COVID economic recovery.

- We need to promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, deepen regional economic integration, and enhance supply, industrial, data and human resources chains.

- Efforts must be made to boost the digital economy, and step up exchanges and cooperation in areas including artificial intelligence, biomedicine and modern energy.

On health and climate

- We must put people and their lives above anything else, scale up information sharing and collective efforts, and enhance public health and medical cooperation.

- The key role of the World Health Organization must be given full play in the ongoing fight against COVID-19.

- Efforts should be made to bolster international cooperation on the research and development, production and distribution of vaccines in the ongoing fight against COVID-19.

- Efforts should be made to ensure that everyone in the world can access and afford the vaccines they need.

- We should advance international cooperation on climate change and do more to implement the Paris Agreement.

On diversity

- We must reject the cold-war and zero-sum mentality and oppose a new "Cold War" and ideological confrontation in whatever forms.

- The principles of equality, mutual respect and mutual trust must be put front and center in state-to-state relations.

- Bossing others around or meddling in others' internal affairs would not get one any support.

- We must advocate peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom, which are common values of humanity, and encourage exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations to promote the progress of human civilization.

On China's commitments

- China will promote a new type of international relations.

- China will continue anti-COVID cooperation with the WHO and other countries and do more to help developing countries defeat the virus.

- China will honor its commitment of making vaccines a global public good.

- China will never seek hegemony, expansion, or a sphere of influence no matter how strong it may grow.

- China will take an active part in multilateral cooperation on trade and investment, fully implement the Foreign Investment Law and its supporting rules and regulations, and cut further the negative list on foreign investment.

- China will continue to develop the Hainan Free Trade Port and develop new systems for a higher-standard open economy.

- All are welcome to share in the vast opportunities of the Chinese market.

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