•Premier Li Qiang of the Chinese State Council, speaking during the opening ceremony of the first China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) and Global Supply Chain Innovation and Development Forum in Beijing, China.
On November 28, 2023, Premier Li Qiang of the Chinese State Council, attended the opening ceremony of the first China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) and Global Supply Chain Innovation and Development Forum in Beijing, and delivered a keynote speech.
Li said that the CISCE is the world’s first national expo with the theme of supply chain, and the current world economic recovery is facing difficulties.
Li stated that as Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out, maintaining the resilience and stability of global industrial and supply chains is an important guarantee for the promotion of global economic development.
He also said that consolidating and strengthening cooperation in global industrial and supply chains reflects the interests of all parties and the pressing aspirations, adding that the expo held by China aims to answer the call of the times, and create an international platform for all parties to strengthen communication, deepen cooperation and seek common development.
Li pointed out that both history and reality have proven that countries around the world will benefit when cooperation in global industrial and supply chains remains stable and continues to deepen; otherwise, the world will generally bear losses when cooperation in global industrial and supply chains is hindered and stagnates.
According to Li, “China is a participant in, beneficiary of, and also a staunch guardian and builder of cooperation in global industrial and supply chains. China is ready to work with all other parties to make the global industrial and supply chains more resilient, efficient and dynamic, and make greater contribution to promoting global economic recovery, development and prosperity.”
Li further made a four-point proposal on deepening international cooperation in industrial and supply chains. First is to jointly build safe and stable industrial and supply chains, enhance the resource coordination of key industrial chains on a global scale, and avoid interfering with market behaviors at will. In this regard, Li said China will continue to provide the world with high-quality made-in-China products and stable supply from China.
The second proposal is to jointly build smooth and efficient industrial and supply chains, further strengthen global connectivity and make the circulation of factors of production more convenient and their allocation more effective. Li stated that China will continue to advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and step up innovation cooperation in smart manufacturing, the digital economy and other fields.
The third is to jointly build open and inclusive industrial and supply chains, take a clear-cut stand against protectionism and various forms of “decoupling and severing industrial and supply chains,” and make efforts to promote the green and low-carbon transition of industrial and supply chains. Li explained that China will integrate at a deeper level into the global system of industrial and supply chains, and will actively participate in international cooperation in the fields of green development.
Fourth, jointly build industrial and supply chains that are mutually beneficial and win-win. It is necessary to promote the building of a global system of industrial and supply chains with extensive participation, complementary advantages and shared dividends among all the countries. China will actively promote industrial and production capacity cooperation with other countries, and help developing countries participate more deeply in global value chains. China hopes that entrepreneurs from all over the world will play an active role in promoting the steady operation of the global industrial and supply chains. China will provide more convenience and better guarantees for enterprises from all other countries to invest and do business in China.
•Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi (m front roll), presiding over a high-level meeting of the United Nations Security Council on the Palestinian-Israeli crisis in New York, United States.
Wang Yi Chairs UNSC High-Level Meeting on Palestinian-Israeli Crisis
On November 29, 2023, Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, presided over a high-level meeting of the United Nations Security Council on the Palestinian-Israeli crisis in New York, as China served as the rotating president of the council for November.
Foreign ministers and senior representatives from around 20 countries, including Palestine, Qatar, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia, Turkiye, Slovenia and Malaysia, and all members of the Security Council, attended the meeting.
The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres and UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, briefed the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East, including in Gaza.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Wang, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said the Palestinian-Israeli issue has caused the loss of a large number of innocent lives and unprecedented humanitarian disasters, and its spillover effects are still emerging.
Wang also said war tests conscience and justice, while peace calls for reason and wisdom.
Wang further said the international community must take more proactive actions to save lives and restore peace.
China-Africa Cooperation Propels Africa’s Digital Economy Development
In recent years, amid a sluggish global economy, an increasing number of African nations have recognized the digital economy as a pivotal driver for their development, and China, with close connections with Africa, naturally emerges as a crucial partner in propelling the continent’s digital economy and realizing its modernization aspirations, Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Zhang Xiangchen, has said.
In the process of economic globalization, there exists an imbalance in the distribution of interests between the Global North and the Global South, Zhang said in a recent interview with Xinhua in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, noting that developing countries, especially African nations, have reaped limited benefits.
Developing the digital economy is a crucial pathway to gaining advantages in international competition in the future, Zhang said.
Zhang added that developing countries, including those in Africa, should benefit from “re-globalization” distinguished by its emphasis on digitalization.
Africa, Zhang stated, has a vast market, a sound market environment and the youngest population globally, which he further said, “are advantages for Africa to develop the digital economy.”
Wang Yi, Blinken in Telephone Conversation
On December 6, 2023, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, had a phone call with United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken at the latter’s request.
Blinken thanked Wang for visiting the United States Embassy in China to mourn the passing of former United States Secretary of State, Dr Henry Kissinger.
Wang said Kissinger always advocated that China and the United States, two major countries, should respect each other, progress together and fulfill their due international responsibilities.
Wang also said Kissinger repeatedly stressed that the United States should fully understand the importance of the Taiwan question to China, and the diplomatic legacy left by him is worth being carried forward and developed by future generations.
Wang further said President Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden had a successful meeting in San Francisco and set a future-oriented “San Francisco vision”, which is of milestone significance.
The two sides had an exchange of views on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and agreed to maintain communication on the situation in the Middle East. Wang Yi said that the most pressing task is to stop fighting and end hostilities immediately.
On his part, Blinken spoke on his recent visit to the Middle East and the United States’ view on the development of the situation, agreeing that the two-state solution should be implemented.
Belt and Road Initiative: A Road of Innovation for the New Era
Innovation is the primary force in driving development. President Xi Jinping stressed that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is innovative by nature and its success needs to be powered by innovation. For 10 years, guided by innovative ideas, Belt and Road cooperation has pooled resources of innovation from various parties, injecting strong impetus into the development of partner countries and bringing tangible benefits to the people. A road of innovation for the new era is connecting China to the world.
This is a road that inspires innovative ideas for cooperation. Rooted in the spirit of harmony, inclusiveness, and cooperation of the ancient Silk Road, the BRI has put forward the innovative principle of extensive consultation and joint contribution for shared benefit, and abandoned the zero-sum mentality featured in the donors-dominated, Western-led model of international cooperation, thus creating a new vision for international cooperation. Just as the British commentator Martin Jacques observed, the BRI is completely novel and, in terms of its global impact, a bold and new project unprecedented in its character and conception.
This is a road that brings together resources of innovation. In the past decade, Belt and Road cooperation has spurred greater innovation in science and technology. From promoting people-to-people exchanges in science and technology to jointly building laboratories, from enhancing cooperation on science and technology parks to building technology transfer centers, the vision for a community of innovation featuring shared development philosophies, unimpeded flow of production factors, networked technology facilities, connected innovation chains and vibrant people-to-people exchanges is turning into reality.
At the water-conserving irrigation laboratory jointly built by China and Egypt, water can be channeled to the roots of crops through underground seeping pipes with just a tap on the phone. This advanced water-saving irrigation system from China provides an effective solution to the problems of high temperature, drought and water shortage that plague Egypt’s agricultural development. Belt and Road cooperation is also instrumental in integrating resources of innovation from all parties.