BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Monday that China is ready to work with countries around the world to promote more robust, greener and healthier global development.
Xi made the remarks in a congratulatory letter to a forum on global development held in Beijing on Monday.
The world is facing drastic changes and a pandemic both unseen in a century, and the global economic recovery is weak and sluggish, Xi said. The development gap between the North and the South is widening, and the world has entered a new period of turbulence and changes, he said, adding that promoting global development has become a major subject faced by mankind.
Therefore, China proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI), he said. China is ready to make joint efforts with countries around the world to follow a people-centered approach, stay committed to benefits for all, and prioritize development on the international agenda, he said.
He stressed China’s readiness to work with other countries in promoting innovation-driven development and harmony between man and nature, accelerating the implementation of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and pursuing more robust, greener and healthier global development.
The GDI was put forward by the Chinese president in September last year at the general debate of the 76th session of the UN General Assembly.
Countries associated with the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC), China, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, should make joint efforts to build a stronger Lancang-Mekong economic development belt, said the Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday.
He made the remarks while co-chairing the seventh LMC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting with Myanmar’s Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin in Bagan, Myanmar.
Priorities of LMC in the futureÂ
Noting that the Chinese economy, which enjoys sustained growth in the long run, is accelerating the building of a new development pattern and promoting high-quality development, Wang said that it will provide greater opportunities for countries along the Mekong River.
He called on the LMC countries to jointly build demonstration zones for high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, pilot zones for Global Development Initiative, and pilot zones for Global Security Initiative.
In deepening economic integration, he proposed developing the China-Laos Railway and promoting the construction of the railways of China-Laos and Thailand.
In strengthening agricultural cooperation, he proposed jointly building demonstration bases for agricultural products and carrying out cooperation on green and ecological grain storage.
He also underlined further cooperation in adhering to green development, promoting digital industry, and having closer people-to-people exchanges.
Initiatives benefiting Mekong countriesÂ
In the next phase, China will introduce more initiatives to share the benefits of cooperation and boost development momentum with Mekong countries, Wang announced at the meeting.
China will carry out 100 agricultural technology projects for Mekong countries, train 1,000 agricultural pioneers and build 10,000 hectares of demonstration farmland, he said.
China will provide safety checks for 20 reservoirs and dams to ensure flood control, food, water supply and ecological security for 70 million people in the river basin, he said.
Plans to promote cooperation in digital economy cooperation, space, talents and public health are also covered in the initiatives.
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks at the seventh LMC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Bagan, Myanmar, July 4, 2022. /China’s Foreign Ministry
A series of new cooperation consensusÂ
This foreign ministers’ meeting has reached a series of new cooperation consensus, Wang said while meeting the press with Myanmar’s foreign minister after the meeting.
The LMC, as the first type of sub-regional cooperation mechanism jointly established by the six countries along the Lancang-Mekong River, has developed rapidly and achieved remarkable results since its launch six years ago, he said.
The six countries deliberated and adopted the LMC five-year action plan (2023-2027). Several documents were also issued, such as a joint press communique on deepening cooperation in customs trade security and facilitation, a joint statement on agricultural cooperation and food security, and a joint statement on disaster management, according to China’s Foreign Ministry.
