On November 5, Premier Li Qiang of the State Council attended the opening ceremony of the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE) and the Hongqiao International Economic Forum in Shanghai, and delivered a keynote speech.
Premier Li stated that as President Xi Jinping has pointed out, China's economy is like a sea, and the world economy is also a sea—all the seas and oceans of the world are interconnected. The CIIE is the estuary through which the world economy connects to China's economy, and an important bridge linking China with the rest of the world. The number of participating enterprises at this year's CIIE has hit a new historical high, fully demonstrating the vigorous vitality of China's super-large-scale market.
Premier Li noted that the continuous success of the CIIE is largely due to adhering to the principle of "sharing interests with the world". In contrast, some unilateralist and protectionist practices in the international community have severely disrupted the international economic and trade order and hindered the operation of the world economy. What values and concepts should be upheld in international economic and trade activities has become an increasingly important and practical issue. Premier Li shared three views with the participants: First, adhere to equality and mutual benefit to consolidate the foundation of legitimate common interests. As the world economic growth slows down and international disputes intensify, it is even more important to uphold equal and mutually beneficial cooperation, embrace free trade, and resolve contradictions and problems through joint development. Second, always uphold morality and justice to effectively safeguard international fairness and justice. All countries in the world are closely interconnected in their destinies and should balance interests with justice, work together through thick and thin, and support each other. Third, promote governance reform to improve the international economic and trade rule system. China is willing to work with all parties to actively promote the implementation of the Global Governance Initiative in the field of international economy and trade, and reform and improve the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core.
Premier Li emphasized that the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China reviewed and adopted the Recommendations for the 15th Five-Year Plan, injecting more certainty into China's economic and social development in the coming period. This certainty is reflected in two key aspects: First, certainty in development. China will continue to focus on economic construction, concentrate efforts on advancing high-quality development, and make new and important contributions to global economic growth. Second, certainty in opening-up. China will unswervingly promote high-level opening-up, steadily expand institutional opening-up, and advance the comprehensive pilot demonstration of expanding opening-up in the service sector. A China moving towards modernization will surely inject more stability and positive energy into the world.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili of Georgia, Prime Minister Miloš Vučević of Serbia, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas of the House of Representatives of Nigeria, President Alojz Kovšca of the National Council of Slovenia, Special Representative of the President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan Al Nahyan, and Director-General Gerd Müller of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), among others, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches. Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) delivered a video speech. Approximately 1,500 representatives from 155 countries, regions, international organizations, as well as political, business, and academic circles attended the opening ceremony.
Foreign leaders and heads of international organizations stated that the CIIE plays a crucial role in promoting open cooperation and the global economy, demonstrating China's major-country responsibility of sharing opportunities and seeking common development with the world. All parties are willing to deepen cooperation with China in fields such as economy and trade, connectivity, innovation, and green development, safeguard free and fair trade, and jointly promote development and prosperity.
