Ren Hongbin

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping has, with eminent political wisdom and extraordinary theoretical courage of a Marxist statesman, thinker and strategist, and a profound understanding of the development trend of China in a new era and the wider world, made a series of theoretical and practical innovations in international work, and created Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. Xi’s important views on promoting global economic governance are high-minded, broad and profound, and as an important part of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, they are fundamental guidance for China to actively participate and lead global economic governance. We should persist in taking Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy for guidance, mindful of what is important for the country, giving play to advantageous feature, resolute and dauntless to come forward, taking on responsibility for reforming and building on global economic governance system, and making fresh and even more contributions to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

GAINING A DEEP TAKE OF XI’S VIEWS ON IMPROVING GLOBAL ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE

As the world today undergoes profound changes unseen in a century, with deep shift in balance of power and rising global challenges, it becomes a general trend to enhance global governance, and to advance systemic change in global economic governance. General Secretary Xi Jinping is insightful of changes in the world, grasping the pulse of our times, leading the world trend, and putting forward a series of new concepts, new thinking and new strategy on global economic governance, where he contributes to the world Chinese wisdom and Chinese approach and opens a new vista of theoretical innovation in international relations of the contemporary world by achieving high unity between historical mission and tendency of the day, between national spirit and internationalism, and between a keen sense of responsibility for China and that for the world.

I. Promoting a Vision of Global Economic Governance Featuring Equality, Openness, Cooperation and Shared Benefit

As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, global economic governance should be based on equality, better reflect the new reality of world economic landscape, increase the representation and say of emerging markets and developing countries, and ensure that all countries have equal rights, equal opportunities and equal rules to follow in international economic cooperation; it should embrace openness, be based on open concepts, open policies and open mechanisms, open to suggestions and interest of various circle of society, encourage active participation and integration of all parties, refrain from making exclusive arrangements and prevent against closed governance mechanisms and fragmentation of rules; it should be driven by cooperation, enhancing communication and coordination, accommodating each other’s interests and concerns, and working together to discuss the rules, build mechanisms and meet challenges; and it should aim at shared benefit, advocating participation by all and benefits for all instead of seeking dominance or winner-takes-all results, and seeking the sharing of interests and win-win prospects. Such a vision of global economic governance is a complete system with rigorous logic and rich connotation, and profoundly expounds on the direction of reform for improving global economic governance, both matching international tendency of the day and taking into consideration concerns of all parties, both standing on the high moral ground of world development and human progress, and rejecting old mindset of zero-sum game and power politics, both adding radiance and beauty to China’s pragmatic actions, and going with the tide of peace and development of our times, thus winning broad resonance and general appreciation of the international community.

Xi Jinping delivers video speech at the Conference on the 70th Anniversary of CCPIT & Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit.

II. Making Clear Correct Direction for Healthy Development of Economic Globalization

Since the Cold War ended, economic globalization had developed fast, vastly spurring great prosperity of trade, great facilitation of investment, great mobility of people, and great development of technology. However, for a period of time, economic globalization has encountered headwind and reverse current, the outbreak of COVID-19 further exacerbating this tendency: in recent years “World Openness Index” being on the decline and global consensus for opening continuing to be weakened. Reflecting on history, based on the present, and with an eye on the future, General Secretary Xi Jinping has taken a clear-cut stand in pointing out that economic globalization is the objective requirement of developing productive forces and thus an irresistible historical trend, actively advocated the construction of an open world economy, and time and again emphasized on the necessity to adapt to and guide economic globalization so as to allow all countries, all strata, all groups of people to share its dividend. China is an active participant and a staunch supporter of economic globalization. As Xi observed, as for China, we will not change our resolve to open wider at a high standard; we will not change our determination to share development opportunities with the rest of the world; and we will not change our commitment to an economic globalization that is more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all. With eminent strategic insight, General Secretary Xi Jinping has taken the pulse of the world accurately, come up with an effective prescription, and shown his mettle for taking major-country responsibility.

III. Focusing on Practicing True Multilateralism

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has, on several occasions including the meetings of multilateral mechanisms such as the UN, the G20, the APEC and the BRICS, profoundly expounded on the core meaning and fundamental principles of multilateralism and path to advancing it, providing strategic guidance for carrying forward, practicing and developing multilateralism. As Xi remarked, all countries should jointly manage global affairs and write international rules; promoting greater democracy in international relations and upholding true multilateralism is the expectation of the people and the prevailing trend of our times; we should stay committed to openness and inclusiveness instead of closeness and exclusion, stay committed to international law and international rules instead of seeking one’s own supremacy, stay committed to consultation and cooperation instead of conflict and confrontation, and stay committed to keeping up with the times instead of rejecting change; multilateral institutions, which provide the platforms for putting multilateralism into action and which are the basic architecture underpinning multilateralism, should have their authority and effectiveness safeguarded. As the world is facing the choice between solidarity or division, between cooperation or confrontation, and between justice or hegemony, General Secretary Xi Jinping has answered indepth such important theoretical and practical questions of “what kind of multilateralism the world needs, and how to practice multilateralism for various countries”, injecting positive energy into a world of uncertainty and instability, throwing light on the path forward for the international community, and carrying epoch value and world significance.

On May 18-19, 2022, the Conference on the 70th Anniversary of CCPIT & Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit was held in Beijing.

IV. Making Important Belt and Road Initiative for Joint Construction

Joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is an important decision made by General Secretary Xi Jinping upon deep reflections on the future and destiny of humanity and development trend of China and the wider world, being based on China, coordinating land and sea routes, and facing the globe, which over the past several years has harvested solid, practical results, and become an important public good for improving global economic governance system, and a major platform for promoting the great practice of building a community with a shared future for mankind. Extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits are not only the principle that the BRI follows, but also the vision of global governance that China has advocated all along, which fully illustrated the international cooperation concepts of mutual respect, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation. Joint construction of the BRI transcends different regions, different stages of development, and different civilizations, taking a new path to building state to state relations featuring dialogue rather than antagonism, partnership rather than alliance, and mutual learning between countries. It has persisted with inheritance and innovation, proactive action, seeking common ground while preserving differences, and inclusiveness, which is beneficial supplement and improvement on existing international mechanisms, promoting an incremental reform in existing international order and international rules. As recognized more and more by various parties, joint construction of the BRI is not only economic cooperation but also an important path to improving global development model and global governance, and promoting healthy development of economic globalization.

FOCUSING ON IMPROVING CAPACITY OF PARTICIPATING IN GLOBAL ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE

Tracing the long river of history, the tide of our times, and the global winds and clouds, one may observe that change in global economic governance system in essence is a great reshuffle of the international pattern and a great readjustment of the international order caused by a changing international economic balance of power, its driver being the decisive role of productive forces, which makes it imperative to accelerate the establishment of a new model of economic governance that meets the needs of the development of world productive forces, and the law governing its development being to roll with the punches, learn to be good at doing and achieving intended goals, and progress incrementally rather than to make a difference overnight. It is necessary to uphold correct worldview, history-view, big picture-view, and role player-view, to enhance system thinking, foresight and creativeness in work, to maintain firm strategic resolve, to enhance comprehensive national strength, and to upgrade control ability for changes in global economic governance system.

I. Correct Worldview for Accessing International Situation

The evolution of profound changes unseen in a century the world undergoes accelerates, which makes our times one of great development and one of great change. Just as profound change in world economic domain is unprecedented, so too are the metabolism and fierce competition brought forth by a new round of technological and industrial revolution, the revolutionary change in the balance of power, and a global governance system being unfitting and asymmetrical. The outbreak of COVID-19 has swallowed global development results over the years, becoming an “accelerator” of restructuring world political and economic pattern, reshaping global industrial and supply chains, and remaking international economic and trade rules. As it becomes a major agenda of our times to improve global economic governance and promote global development, it is imperative to uphold Marxist worldview and methodology, double down on putting into perspective the interest of the world and mankind as a whole; on one hand closely follow new trends and tendencies in a changing international environment, and on the other make indepth analysis of new opportunities and challenges that arise in the world transformation and transition period; and be more active and creative in participating in global economic governance by keeping pace with the trends of the times, and constantly adjusting our strategies, policies and actions in accordance with changing circumstances.

The 7th China-Eurasia Expo opens in Urumqi, Xinjiang on Sept. 19, 2022.

II. Correct History-View for Observing Change-in-Governance Situation

In retrospective, the international system has, over the past few centuries, gradually evolved from great power rivalry of interest and hegemony through wars, colonization, and carving up spheres of influence to countries coordinating their relations and interest through institutional rules. After the Second World War, the Bretton Woods system emerged with its three pillars of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB), providing institutional framework to global economic governance and strongly promoting economic globalization and prosperous development of the world economy. Since the international financial crisis of 2008, the G20 has gradually become the main forum of international economic cooperation, with global economic governance moving from being West-led to shared global governance. At present, the tendency that “the East is rising and the West is declining” and “the South is rising and the North is declining” continues to develop, underscoring the shortcomings of global economic governance such as insufficient representation, inclusiveness and effectiveness. At this important inflection point, we should improve history-thinking ability, be insightful about the law governing world history, keep abreast of the trend of the times, and seize opportune moment for change, pushing global economic governance system to develop in a more equitable and reasonable direction.

III. Correct Big Picture-View for Maintaining Firm Strategic Resolve

In context of drastic changes unseen in a century, profound changes are happening to China’s relations with the wider world, and connections between China and the world, and China’s participation in international affairs continue to deepen. In response to changes of our world, our times, and history, it is necessary to take into account both the domestic and international situations, have a profound understanding and accurate command of the law governing the development of both situations and the interconnection between them, be based on China but have a global perspective, uniting, combining and coordinating both our domestic and international imperatives for favorable domestic and international effect. In order to promote change in global economic governance system, it is necessary to make comprehensive use of both domestic and international markets, both domestic and international resources, and both domestic and international rules, maintaining firm strategic resolve while making positive response; concentrating energy on running our own affairs well and accelerating the construction of a new development paradigm while actively participating in global economic governance and creating a favorable environment for domestic development; and advocating shared global governance and preventing against and resolving fragmented governance while promoting benign interaction between global governance and national governance, and taking overall strategy for the focus of all our initiatives.

2022 BRICS Wome’s Leadership Forum.

IV. Correct Role Player-View for Continuing to Take Major-Country Responsibility

China is increasingly moving to the center of world stage as a promoter of world peace, contributor to global development, and upholder of the international order, as generally recognized by the international community. China has become the world’s second largest economy, its GDP exceeding 110 trillion RMB. It has continued to be a major stabilizer and source of world economic growth, and a key force for change in global economic governance. From the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting Beijing 2014 to the G20 Hangzhou Summit 2016, from the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation to the China International Import Expo, multilateral events have been increasingly visited by one wave of “Chinoiserie” after another, and more and more initiatives proposed by China becoming international consensus and being converted into international actions. It is necessary to precede from China’s national conditions, uphold its status as a developing country, do everything within our capacity to resolve the most practical problems in actively taking on international responsibility, constantly serve the fundamental and shared interests of the Chinese people and other people around the world, enhance macro policy coordination with other major world economies, and provide even more global public goods.

ACTIVELY GUIDING PROCESS OF CHANGE IN GLOBAL ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE

Business communities are an important factor in promoting change in global economic governance system. Chinese President Xi Jinping made an important video address at the Conference of the 70th Anniversary of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and the Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit, in which he was clear-cut with the practical path to improving global governance, the fundamental strategy for reinvigorating trade and investment, and required the CCPIT to continue to break new ground with its tradition of excellence and score still greater achievements in promoting the construction of an open world economy. The CCPIT will further study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, especially Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, performing its function of connecting business and government, integrating domestic and international, and ensuring unimpeded flow between both supply and demand sides; upgrading its work and innovation capacity, strengthening its service network for businesses, enlarging its coverage of trade and investment promotion, expanding its international circle of friends, drawing the largest concentric circles, and taking the front ranks in promoting the improvement on global economic governance and making still more contributions.

The 14th China-Latin America Entrepreneur Summit in Chongqing.

I. Vigorously Promoting International Economic and Trade Ties and Cooperation to Do More in Building an Open World Economy

Since its founding in 1952, from recovering and developing foreign trade to building a great trading power, from introducing capital and technology to China to helping major foreign investment project hit the ground, from assisting Chinese companies to go global to promoting joint BRI construction, and from serving the development of open local economy to boosting the optimization of enabling doing business environment, the CCPIT has all the way advanced with the times, progressed together with opening up, and stood at the forefront of China’s open-up. As a founder and main force of China’s foreign economic and trade exhibitions, the CCPIT has cumulatively organized and participated in more than 10,000 exhibitions. It took part in preparing and organizing two editions of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF), as one of the series of activities of which the Belt and Road CEO Conference facilitated Chinese and International companies to conclude 125 agreements, a highlight of the 2rd BRF. The history of CCPIT is an epitome of China’s ever-expanding openingup endeavor, witnessing the country making big strides to the world. Facing the future, we will persist in linking China and foreign countries, bridging the world, building more platforms of exchange and cooperation, providing better business and legal services, giving priority to promoting the acceleration of building a new development paradigm, dispatching special task forces to better serve enterprises with foreign investment, focusing on initiating brand name product shows to promote stabilization of industrial and supply chains, deepening BRI economic and trade cooperation, assisting high-quality implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), promoting construction of a high-standard free trade area network, and advancing China’s accession into the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA).

II. Actively Enhancing Work on Multilateral Mechanism Platforms to Play a Blinder in Serving Overall Situation of International Work

The CCPIT has, as always, persisted with fostering political contacts with economic ones, contributing to governmental relations with nongovernmental ones, and played an important role in tightening the bond of interests between Chinese and international business communities, promoting international economic and trade relations, and facilitating state-to-state relations. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CCPIT has actively organized Chinese business community to partake in business activities within the framework of multilateral mechanisms like the G20 and the APEC, and by fully expressing their concerns and interests and building consensus extensively, the Chinese business community has achieved a historic leap in participating in global governance from “buying a ticket to watch the drama” to “getting unto the stage to perform in the drama”. Facing the future, we shall refine our endeavors in organizing major activities of economic diplomacy, people-to-people diplomacy and public diplomacy, holding exhibitions and fora under the mechanisms such as China-ASEAN, China-Africa, China-Arab, and China-CELAC Forum, taking an active part in the work of governmental cooperation mechanisms between China and concerned countries, enhancing our work in promoting trade and investment in countries with no or newly established diplomatic ties with China, better publicizing China’s policy positions, contributing to increasing understanding and dispelling mistrust. We shall further increase our reach and influence in business activities on multilateral platforms, contributing more Chinese proposals that are both in China’s interest and with international concurrence. We shall bring into play the role of the China Council of the Sustainable Markets Initiative in building an important platform for implementing the GDI and building on synergy for implementing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development. We shall join hands with our foreign counterparts in building business cooperation mechanisms featuring closer ties and more solid work, and enhancing communication and exchange with important economic and trade organizations, well-known companies, think tanks and local governments in various countries to draw the largest concentric circles.

The 19th China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit held in Nanning, Guangxi.

III. Deeply Involved in Concerned International Organizations to Increase Our Say in Making Economic and Trade Rules

Being able to represent Chinese business community to participate in the work of international organizations has always been the CCPIT’s duty and mission. Way back in the early 1970s, it set up contacts with international organizations with jurisdiction of intellectual property rights and exhibition. Since reform and opening-up began, its partnership network with international organizations has been on the increase, facilitating the leap of Chinese business community from a mere follower of international rules to a participant and contributor to the making of rules. Facing the future, We shall firmly support the multilateral trading system, follow up with reform on the World Trade Organizations (WTO) and make pertinent recommendations, get deeply involved in deliberation of trade policies of the WTO, and urge member states to earnestly fulfil obligations. We shall uphold the international system with the UN at its core, bring into full play our role as observer of the UN Commission on International Trade Law, comprehensive observer of the UN Conference on Trade and Development, and holder of consul-tative status with the UN Industrial Development Organization, and build contacts with more bodies and strengthen cooperation with them. We shall perform pertinent duty and responsibility for the International Exhibitions Bureau, actively research and make recommendations to the Chinese side. We shall comprehensively dovetail our work with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), make good use of the mechanism of various ICC professional committees, and raise our profile in the ICC. We shall train and recommend talents with firm political stance, familiar with China’s national conditions, having global perspective, and well versed in international rules to take positions or work in international organizations, thus increasing China’s representation in those organizations. We shall take an active part in the making of international economic and trade rules, follow up with hot topics like digital economy, green and low carbon, and climate change, enhance analysis and judgment, make practical recommendations so as to boost the building of a more equitable and reasonable global economic system.

IV. Building International Dissemination Capacity to Become a Stronger Voice to Increase China’s International Influence

China Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.

Over the past 70 years, the CCPIT has made international friends extensively and deeply, availing itself of platforms like world expos, international conferences and fora to diligently, warmly and expressively tell China’s story well, and present a colorful, vivid and multi-dimensional China. Since it represented the country to get onto the stage of world expo for the first time in 1982, the CCPIT has for 16 times organized China national pavilions abroad, and the World Expo Shanghai made true the century-old world expo dream of the Chinese nation, showing the world an increasingly open China. Facing the future, we shall turn our special feature of linking China and foreign countries and bridging the world into an international dissemination advantage, doing a good job at holding routine press conferences, developing a convergence media matrix featuring a Weibo public account, a WeChat public account and a news application, honing our speaking out ability on major issues, and enhancing appeal, affinity and effectiveness of our international dissemination. We shall make good use of channels like exhibitions, fora, and exchange of visits to advance global, regional and focused distributions of China’s story and China’s voice, to comprehensively expound on Chinese concepts of development, security, human rights, ecology, international order, and global governance, and help the world better understand and concur China. We shall construct high-level doer think tanks, deepen exchange and cooperation with foreign chambers of commerce, business associations and think tanks, build on reputation of such brand name research products of ours such as Business Environment of the European Union, Business Environment of the United States, Business Environment Guide for key countries and regions, and BRI legal Research by countries, and systematically publicize abroad major opening measures of China and pragmatic cooperation interest of Chinese companies in order to help build favorable international public opinion environment for domestic development.

History illuminates the future, and our journey will be always on. We shall close ranks around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as its core, never forget our original aspiration and founding mission, forge ahead with enterprise and fortitude, continue to secure extraordinary achievements in participating in global economic governance, and make still more contributions to making true the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation, and to building a community with a shared future for mankind.