Introduction
Opening is the only way for the country to prosper and develop. In the new era, China has unswervingly expanded high-level opening up, promoted the construction of the "Belt and Road", led the reform of the global economic governance system, accelerated the layout of the free trade zone port, and opened up to the outside world reflects a new pattern, reflects new concepts, and puts forward new propositions.
Author: Gu Xueming
Director of the Institute of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce
The history of human development shows that opening up is the only way for the prosperity and development of the country and the source of driving force for the progress of human civilization. Looking at the historical process of China's opening up, it is not difficult to find that since the founding of New China, China has always insisted on opening its doors to carry out construction, committed to developing mutually beneficial cooperation with foreign countries, and gradually explored a path of open development with Chinese characteristics in the practice of "crossing the river by feeling the stones".
Open development with Chinese characteristics has roughly gone through three stages. During the first 30 years after the founding of New China, due to subjective and objective conditions, China's open exploration in a relatively closed environment has provided strong support for socialist construction. China began reform and opening up in 1978. This was not only a historical turning point in China's construction, development and modernization process, but also a key move that determines the future and destiny of contemporary China. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, in the face of the intricate changes in the international situation, the Party Central Committee has always supported economic globalization, firmly expanded opening up to the outside world, and continuously promoted the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, creating a new situation for China's opening up to the outside world in the new era through continuous reform practice.
Image source: Xinhua News Agency
President Xi Jinping has not only repeatedly declared to the outside world that China "reform will not stop and opening up will not stop" and "China's door to opening up will not close, it will only open wider and wider", but also personally planned and deployed a series of new concepts, new propositions and new initiatives to lead the development and progress of mankind:
First, the "Belt and Road" initiative continues to inject momentum into the development of the world economy.
Since the "Belt and Road" initiative was proposed, with the joint efforts of all parties, the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" has changed from a "freehand brushwork" of planning and layout to a "fine brushwork painting" of meticulous cultivation, creating a new platform for the world to share China's development opportunities and opening up a new model for international cooperation. In terms of "policy communication", China has signed more than 200 cooperation documents on jointly building the "Belt and Road" with more than 170 countries and international organizations.
In terms of "fixes and connections", over the past eight years, the construction of "six corridors, six roads, multiple countries and multiple ports" has been continuously promoted, building a bridge for the connectivity of facilities and smooth trade between China and countries along the route. At the same time, the China-Europe Express, a landmark project of the "Belt and Road", has been launched in a total of more than 40,000 trains, reaching 168 cities in 23 overseas countries.
Image source: China Daily
In terms of "smooth trade", the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" has improved the level of trade facilitation, and the trade cake is getting bigger and bigger. From 2013 to 2020, China's cumulative trade in goods with countries along the route amounted to US$9.2 trillion.
In terms of "financial and financial communication", China's two-way investment cooperation with countries along the route has been deepening, and the two-way investment momentum is good. At present, the cumulative approved investment amount of the AIIB has exceeded US$22 billion. In the first three quarters of this year, investment in China by countries along the "Belt and Road" increased by 31.9% year-on-year.
In terms of "people-hearted communication", in recent years, China and countries along the route have actively carried out cooperation in education, science, culture, sports, tourism, health and other fields. Especially since the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, China and countries along the route have helped each other, further narrowing the distance between people.
Image source: Xinhua News Agency
Second, continuously leading the reform of the global economic governance system through China's solutions.
First, we actively promote the improvement of economic governance through the United Nations, support the vast number of developing countries to increase their representation and voice in global economic governance, and strengthen tripartite cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme, FAO and other countries.Second, we actively participated in the reform of the WTO and issued the "China's Position Document on the Reform of the WTO" in 2018, putting forward the "three principles and five propositions". In May 2019, China submitted the "China Proposal Document on WTO Reform" to the WTO, proposing reform ideas on four key areas of action and 12 specific topics. Third, we actively support the major economic governance platforms to play a better role. China successfully hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders' meeting twice and participated in APEC cooperation in depth. President Xi Jinping even attended previous G20 Leaders' Summits, promoted the achievement of some cooperation results, and continuously improved the functions of multilateral governance mechanisms. In addition, China's free trade "circle of friends" is getting bigger and bigger.
In recent years, the pace of China's free trade zone construction has accelerated, and it has successively reached free trade agreements with Iceland, Switzerland, South Korea, Australia, Georgia, Maldives, Mauritius, Cambodia and other countries. In November 2020, under the active promotion of China, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) was officially signed. One month later, the negotiations on the China-EU Comprehensive Investment Agreement were completed as scheduled. Not long ago, China applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP).
Image source: China Daily
, build the CIIE into an international public product of open cooperation.
China International Import Expo is the world's first national-level exhibition with import-themed. It is an open platform for "buy, sell, and benefit the world" hosted by China, participated by various countries, and shared by the world. So far, the CIIE has been held for four consecutive sessions, and has become a global public product integrating international procurement, investment promotion, cultural exchanges and open cooperation.
In terms of "international procurement", the CIIE has attracted a large number of Fortune 500 and industry-leading companies. They have brought new products and services with their own characteristics to the CIIE. While promoting the export of exhibitors to China, they have greatly met the consumption needs of domestic consumers.
In terms of "investment promotion", various parts of China have used the CIIE platform to carry out a large number of investment promotion and project promotion activities. In the large-scale trade and investment matching meeting held by the third CIIE, 861 cooperation intentions were directly promoted.
In terms of "people and cultural exchanges", exhibitors actively use the "national exhibition" to display their unique regional culture and advantageous industries, which makes the CIIE an important window for exhibitors to promote to the Chinese people.
In terms of "open cooperation", the CIIE has built an international public platform to support economic globalization and maintain the multilateral trading system, and sang a chorus of open cooperation among various countries. In particular, the Hongqiao International Economic Forum has become a high-end dialogue platform for the international community to collide with ideas and build consensus, and has become the commanding heights for promoting multilateralism.
Image source: Oriental ICh
Fourth, the free trade zone port has become a new highland for deepening reform and promoting opening up.
In 2013, at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, a decision was made to accelerate the construction of free trade zones and form a global high-standard free trade zone network. In September of the same year, the first free trade pilot zone was established in Shanghai. In October 2017, the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China made a decision to grant the free trade zone greater reform autonomy and explore the construction of a free trade port. Based on this, Hainan Free Trade Port came into being. At present, China has basically formed a pilot pattern of free trade zone ports covering the east, west, south, north and middle. The relevant plans of the free trade pilot zone have set up more than 3,300 reform pilot tasks, achieving historic changes in the foreign investment management system over the past 40 years of reform and opening up.
First of all, the free trade zone port has achieved major changes in the investment management system with the negative management list as the core. Secondly, a trade supervision system has been basically formed that is in line with internationally accepted rules. Finally, we have increased our efforts to streamline administration and delegate power, and initially established a modern government governance system.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, the beginning of the "14th Five-Year Plan", and a key year for building a new development pattern and implementing the new development concept.At the new historical starting point of the site, facing the major historical proposition of where the world economy is once again facing, China will unswervingly expand high-level opening up to the outside world, insist on making the cake of the global market bigger, making the mechanism of global sharing solid, and making the global cooperation active, and always be a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development, a defender of international order and a provider of public products.
Editor | Song Ping Xinxin
Edit | Zhang Zhao
