Recently, upon the upcoming second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Barbados, Yan Xiusheng published a signed article entitled “Belt and Road Cooperation Shaping a Brighter Shared Future” in the mainstream media of Barbados including The Advocate Newspaper and Nation News. Following is the full context of Ambassador Yan’s article:
Belt and Road Cooperation Shaping a Brighter Shared Future
From April 25 to 27, the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) will be held in Beijing, China. The theme of this year's BRF is Belt and Road Cooperation Shaping a Brighter Shared Future, with advancing Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation toward quality development as its core. H.E. President Xi Jinping will attend the opening ceremony of the BRF and make a keynote speech. During the BRF, China will welcome thousands of representatives from more than 150 countries to Beijing to take stock of what has been achieved and draw a blueprint for future cooperation to further enrich BRI cooperation.
While the BRI is launched by China, its benefits should be shared by the world. Since the BRI was first proposed by H.E. President Xi six years ago, we together with our partners, have advanced the work with the guidance of the principle of consultation and cooperation for shared benefits, and focusing on connectivity in the five priority areas of policy, infrastructure, trade, finance and people-to-people ties, aiming to deepen international cooperation, safeguard multilateralism, and boost global growth.
After 6 years’ work, the BRI has become a widely welcomed international public good. So far, a total of 126 countries and 29 international organizations have signed BRI cooperation documents with China. And the BRI has delivered fruitful outcomes in boosting economic growth and improving people's lives in participating countries. Through BRI cooperation, some countries now have their first motorways or modern railways, some has developed its own car industry, and some have seen an end to their longstanding power shortages. According to the statistics, the BRI cooperative projects have created more than US$2 billion in tax revenue and about 300,000 jobs for host countries. The latest studies by the World Bank Group and other international institutions suggest that the BRI cooperation will cut the costs of global trade by 1.1 to 2.2 percent, and will contribute at least 0.1 percent of global growth in 2019.
At the seminar marking the BRI's fifth anniversary last August, H.E. President Xi highlighted the need to move BRI cooperation toward quality development. This is the goal we are striving to achieve. To this end, we will work vigorously to harness development opportunities, further enhance the complementarity of the development strategies of various parties, ensure that projects launched meet high quality standards, and further promote international cooperation. Looking forward, the BRI will create more opportunities for cooperation.
-- The opportunities come with the BRI's growing international influence, moral appeal and cooperation potential. Against the backdrop of mounting protectionism and unilateralism in the world, the BRI principle of consultation and cooperation for shared benefits has gained wide recognition. Support for and participating in the BRI cooperation is the mainstream view of the international community.
-- The opportunities come with the growing complementarity among the development strategies and plans of all BRI partners, from the solid gains achieved in BRI cooperation across the board, and from progress of bilateral, trilateral and multilateral cooperation. As such, a strong foundation has been laid for quality BRI cooperation.
-- The opportunities come with the accelerated industrialization of a vast number of developing countries, a process which generates new demands in infrastructure connectivity and industrial investment, and promises huge potential for international cooperation.
-- The opportunities also come with the transition of the Chinese economy toward quality development. As China opens its door wider to the world, more opportunities are being created for other countries to participate in BRI cooperation and enter the huge Chinese market.
Barbados is among the first countries that established diplomatic relations with China in the Caribbean region. Since the establishment of the diplomatic relations in 1977, friendly bilateral relations between our two countries have maintained healthy and steady momentum, and plenty of fruitful achievements have been made in the pragmatic cooperation across areas. Last February, our two countries signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation within the Framework of the BRI in Beijing. For next step, China stands ready to enhance cooperation with Barbados within the framework of BRI, to elevate our bilateral relations and pragmatic cooperation to a new height, and benefit peoples in our two countries. I am convinced that with the concerted efforts of all the participating parties, including China and Barbados, the second BRF will deliver fruitful outcomes, create more driving forces for the economic growth, provide more opportunities for international economic cooperation, and contribute more to the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind.
