On the occasion of the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Mission to the EU held online celebrations and Chargé d'Affaires ad Interim Wang Hongjian delivered a video message. The whole text is as follows:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends,
It’s a great pleasure to e-meet old and new friends to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. On behalf of the Chinese Mission to the European Union, I wish to extend my sincere gratitude and greetings to friends from various sectors who have been devoted to China-EU cooperation and to all who follow closely the development of China and China-EU relations.
Over the past 73 years, the Chinese people have forged ahead and made remarkable achievements. At the beginning of this year, the successful convening of the simple, safe and splendid Beijing Winter Olympics sent a strong message of “together for a shared future”! Later in October, the Communist Party of China will draw a new blueprint for the country’s development at its 20th National Congress. The Chinese people, determined and confident, are embarking on a new journey towards the second centenary goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends,
The international situation is undergoing complex and profound changes, with China and the world both facing unprecedented challenges and opportunities. In the past 73 years, China has been committed to its development path and explored a distinctive pathway to modernization, to which we will firmly stick in the future.
China will stick to the course of development by peaceful means. The history of the Chinese nation has nurtured our peace-loving tradition. China has been following an independent foreign policy of peace and remains the only country in the world that enshrines peaceful development in its Constitution. To address the global security dilemma, President Xi Jinping put forward the Global Security Initiative, which builds on the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and seeks to promote the establishment of a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture, a distinct contribution to world peace and stability.
China will stick to the course of development via openness. As the largest trading partner for more than 130 countries and regions, China benefits not only the Chinese people with its development, but also the whole world. Looking ahead, the fundamentals sustaining the long-term growth of the Chinese economy remain unchanged, and so is China’s determination to promote openness at a higher level, and to share its development opportunities with the rest of the world. China’s development will provide strong momentum for world economic recovery, and offer broader market opportunities for all.
China will stick to the course of development through cooperation. A firm advocate for win-win cooperation, China has contributed more than 30 percent to global economic growth and more than 70 percent to global poverty reduction. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, China has provided the international community with over 2.2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines. China has also been active on the climate front, aiming to peak its CO2 emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. The recently proposed Global Development Initiative by President Xi Jinping, which aims at strengthening global development partnerships and promoting more robust, greener and more balanced global development, offers China’s vision and wisdom for advancing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and addressing global development challenges.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends,
To maintain a sound and stable China-EU relationship, as well as to promote international cooperation and human progress, is the common interest and the shared responsibility of both sides. China and the EU, as two major forces, markets and civilizations, need more than ever to increase dialogue, deepen cooperation and jointly forge ahead. Going forward, our relationship will continue to be characterized by three keywords:
The first is strategic partnership, which is the right positioning for China-EU relations. As comprehensive strategic partners, China and the EU enjoy far more consensus and cooperation than differences and competition. China always views its relations with the EU from a strategic perspective, and supports the integration, unity and strategic autonomy of the European Union. For a sound and stable China-EU relationship, it’s important that we perceive each other in the right light, respect each other’s social system and development path, accommodate each other’s core interests and major concerns, so as to maintain the political foundation of our relations.
The second is mutual benefit, which remains the theme of China-EU cooperation. Last year, China-EU two-way trade reached a record high and the bilateral trade volume in the first seven months this year stood at 483.9 billion euros, with a year-on-year growth of 28%. This year also sees the successful convening of the third High-level Environment and Climate Dialogue and the ninth High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue between the two sides. It’s important that we make the most out of existing mechanisms to step up policy coordination, release cooperation potential and seek new areas of win-win benefits. In this process, an open market and fair competition from both sides are needed if we’re to create more opportunities for our two businesses.
The third is multilateralism, which is the shared language between China and the EU. In face of unilateralism of various forms and protectionism in different areas, both China and the EU need to stay vigilant. To answer the call of the times, China and the EU should firmly uphold the international system with the UN at its core and the international order based on international laws, practice multilateralism as it is, and jointly oppose zero-sum games and bloc rivalry. Cooperation stands our only winning chance while retrogression is a road that leads nowhere.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends,
The China-EU relationship, despite some ups and downs, has come a long way since the two sides established diplomatic ties 47 years ago. We firmly believe that as long as China and the EU look far ahead and work in the same direction, we will be able to add new momentum to our relations, inject more stability into the world and deliver more benefits to people of both sides and beyond.
On the occasion of the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, we wish our motherland prosperity and wish all our friends happiness and well-being. Let us also work together for the stable development of China-EU relations and for a better tomorrow for all!
Thank you!