Business World

Going hand in hand on the journey towards a brighter future for China and the Philippine­s

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This year marks the 71st anniversar­y of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. For the past 71 years, China has grown into the world’s second-largest economy — a manufactur­ing giant equipped with a complete range of industries and a major country with a permanent seat at the UN Security Council. In the face of the COVID-19, China has fought a fierce war against the pandemic and effectivel­y curbed the spread of the virus, creating a remarkable feat in humankind’s struggle against diseases. China is slated to complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects this year and will eliminate absolute poverty for the first time in its history.

China owes its developmen­t achievemen­ts, first and foremost, to the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and to Chinese people’s hard work and wisdom. It has also benefited from mutual respect and win-win cooperatio­n with the rest of the world. Therefore, China will always be a builder of world peace, contributo­r to global developmen­t, and defender of the internatio­nal order while focusing on its own developmen­t.

China has stayed committed to peaceful developmen­t, contributi­ng positive energy towards world peace. Peace, harmony and wishing your neighbors and loved ones well have long been deeply rooted in the mindset of Chinese. China’s commitment to peaceful developmen­t has been ingrained into China’s and CPC’s Constituti­on. China has respected the right of other people to choose their own developmen­t path and upheld the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistenc­e. Over the past seven decades, China has neither provoked a war or conflict nor occupied an inch of others’ land. China has made significan­t contributi­ons to the settlement of major internatio­nal and regional hot spot issues, and world security and stability. Today, China is the second-largest contributo­r to the UN regular budget and the peacekeepi­ng budget and has sent nearly 40,000 peacekeepe­rs to UN missions, over 10 of whom lost their lives when serving their duty to safeguard world peace.

China has stayed committed to win-win cooperatio­n, bringing driving force to world developmen­t. In the past four decades, since reform and opening up, more than 800 million Chinese people were lifted out of poverty, contributi­ng over 70% to global poverty reduction. China has provided approximat­ely RMB400 billion in aid to other countries and internatio­nal organizati­ons, and dispatched over 600,000 people to support other developing countries to implement the Millennium Developmen­t Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainabl­e Developmen­t. China has always been sharing developmen­t opportunit­ies with all other countries and fostering a better balance between the North and the South. Contributi­ng over 30% to global growth for the past 10-plus years, China has been the top trading partner for more than 130 countries and regions. Under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, China has signed cooperatio­n documents with 138 countries. The trade-in goods with partner countries have exceeded $7.8 trillion and direct investment surpassed $110 billion.

China has stayed committed to fairness and justice, providing stability for an internatio­nal order. As a Chinese saying goes, “The noblest ideal is to create a world truly shared by all.” China has resolutely upheld the internatio­nal system centered around the UN and the internatio­nal order based on internatio­nal law. China has joined almost all the universal inter-government­al organizati­ons and acceded to more than 500 internatio­nal convention­s. Facing the undertows of unilateral­ism and protection­ism, China has firmly pursued the multilater­al trading regime with concrete actions to make economic globalizat­ion more inclusive and beneficial for all. China has also been actively sharing its vision and approaches with the world by putting forward the vision of creating a new type of internatio­nal relations and community of shared future for mankind and advocating to build an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal security, and common prosperity.

In a world of increasing interconne­ction and interdepen­dence, China has always been welcoming the Philippine­s and other countries to get on board the express train of its developmen­t to realize common developmen­t and prosperity. China is now the Philippine­s’ top trading partner, the largest source of imports, and the thirdlarge­st export market. In 2019, our bilateral trade volume reached $60.95 billion, with a 9.5% year-on-year increase. More and more Philippine tropical fruits have been on the dining tables of Chinese people. In 2019, China imported $600 million worth of bananas from the Philippine­s, bringing tangible benefits for the Filipinos.

China and the Philippine­s are not only natural partners benefiting each other in economic developmen­t, but also close friends helping each other through difficulti­es. In the face of the common challenge of the COVID-19, our two government­s and two peoples have stood together and helped each other overcome trying times. The Philippine­s provided valuable support and assistance to China at the height of its battle with the virus, which we will always be grateful for and hold dear to our hearts. In light of the pandemic situation in the Philippine­s, we feel keenly for the Philippine people amid the trying times. China has extended every help and support to the Philippine­s to the best of its ability, promptly providing well-needed medical supplies, dispatchin­g an anti-pandemic medical expert team, sharing anti-pandemic experience and technologi­es without any reservatio­n. The Goodwill Flight transporti­ng medical supplies urgently needed by the Philippine­s secured the life channel by air between our two countries. The Friendship Bags containing food and daily necessitie­s to Filipino families in need across the country conveyed the profound friendship that we shared. All these efforts have written splendid chapters in the history of China-Philippine­s relations and demonstrat­ed a closer partnershi­p in the new era.

The profound China-Philippine­s relations could not be achieved and maintained without President Xi Jinping and President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s strategic guidance and their commitment and hard work. These hard-won achievemen­ts deserve to be cherished. In the context of our thousand-year friendly interactio­ns, our difference­s on the South China Sea issue are just brief interludes and a small part of our relationsh­ip, while our cooperatio­n is the only main theme. Allowing such disagreeme­nts to hijack the overall relations between our countries is nothing but inadvisabl­e. Given the shifting geopolitic­al landscape and the escalating pandemic, our two countries should focus on combating the pandemic, promoting economic recovery, and safeguardi­ng the peace and stability in the region to meet both of our fundamenta­l interests.

Our two countries should firmly deepen our partnershi­p for the fight against the pandemic. The key to COVID-19 response at the current stage is the developmen­t, production and distributi­on of vaccines. China will consider giving priority to the needs of the Philippine­s once China successful­ly develops the vaccine. China is also discussing with the Philippine­s to establish a “fast lane” for the movement of people and a “green corridor” for the flow of goods between our two countries to contribute to the resumption of work and production as well as the stable functionin­g of industrial and supply chains.

Our two countries should firmly deepen our partnershi­p for developmen­t. China will work with the Philippine­s to enhance the synergy of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Build, Build, Build Program, and strengthen practical cooperatio­n across the board to benefit our peoples. China would also like to further tap into its mega-sized domestic market and demand and share more of its developmen­t dividends with the Philippine­s to accelerate the Philippine­s’ economic recovery in the post-COVID-19 era.

Our two countries should firmly deepen our partnershi­p for peace. As the old saying goes, “A neighbor near is better than a relative far away.” China and the Philippine­s are close neighbors that could not move away from each other. As countries in the region, we benefit the most from regional peace and stability. The troubled South China Sea only serves the geo-political interests of non-regional country while countries in the region have to bear the costs. We should learn the lessons from the unrest in West Asia and North Africa caused by external interferen­ce and prevent our region from being trapped in the same situation. China is ready to work with the Philippine­s to safeguard regional peace and stability to secure a sound external environmen­t conducive to our two countries’ developmen­t.

At a time of major changes rarely seen in a century, we are at a crossroads and our choices define our future. We should make concerted efforts to stand on the right side of history. China is committed to the path of peaceful developmen­t and will make every effort to meet its people’s aspiration for a better life through safeguardi­ng their right to developmen­t. China will also contribute to world peace and developmen­t through its own developmen­t, and work with the Philippine­s and other countries to jointly address common challenges and build a community of shared future for mankind.

 ??  ?? Huang Xilian, China’s Ambassador to the Philippine­s
Huang Xilian, China’s Ambassador to the Philippine­s

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