Urges countries to reject unilateralism & protectionism
BEIJING – President Xi Jinping yesterday summed up four lessons the COVID-19 pandemic brought to human society and called on countries to join hands and prepare to meet even more global challenges.
“First, COVID-19 reminds us that we are living in an interconnected global village with a common stake,” Xi said when addressing through video link from Beijing the general debate of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly yesterday.
No country can gain from others’ difficulties or maintain stability by taking advantage of others’ troubles, he said.
“To pursue a beggar-thy-neighbor policy or just watch from a safe distance when others are in danger will eventually land one in the same trouble faced by others,” Xi said.
“This is why we should embrace the vision of a community with a shared future in which everyone is bound together,” he added.
Second, COVID-19 reminds us that economic globalization is an indisputable reality and a historical trend, Xi said.
“Burying one’s head in the sand like an ostrich in the face of economic globalization or trying to fight it with Don Quixote’s lance goes against the trend of history,” he said.
Countries should say no to unilateralism and protectionism and work to ensure the stable and smooth functioning of global industrial and supply chains, Xi said.
Third, Xi said humankind should launch a green revolution and move faster to create a green way of development and life, preserve the environment and make Mother Earth a better place for all.
China will scale up its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions by adopting more vigorous policies and measures, Xi pledged.
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) are intended reductions in greenhouse gas emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
China also aims to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, Xi said, calling on countries to pursue innovative, coordinated, green and open development for all.
“Fourth, COVID-19 reminds us that the global governance system calls for reform and improvement,” Xi said.
The global governance system should adapt itself to evolving global political and economic dynamics, meet global challenges and embrace the underlying trend of peace, development and win-win cooperation, he added.
Active contribution to global anti-pandemic cooperation
China will continue to share its epidemic control practices as well as diagnostics and therapeutics with other countries, provide support and assistance to countries in need, and ensure stable global anti-epidemic supply chains, Xi said.
Xi also said China will provide US$50 million to the China-FAO South-South Cooperation Trust Fund (Phase III), referring to a fund set up by China and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
China will also actively participate in the global research on tracing the source and transmission routes of the novel coronavirus, he said.
At the moment, several COVID-19 vaccines developed by China are in Phase III clinical trials, Xi pointed out, adding that when their development is completed and they are available for use, the vaccines will be provided to other developing countries on a priority basis
No intention to fight either Cold War or hot war
Xi also said China has no intention to fight either a Cold War or a hot war with any country, adding that China is committed to peaceful, open, cooperative and common development.
“We will never seek hegemony, expansion, or sphere of influence,” Xi said.
China will continue to narrow differences and resolve disputes with others through dialogue and negotiation, he added.
China will not pursue development behind closed doors, Xi said, adding that China does not seek to develop only itself or engage in a zero-sum game.
“Rather, we aim to foster, over time, a new development paradigm with domestic circulation as the mainstay and domestic and international circulations reinforcing each other,” Xi said.
This will create more space for China’s economic development and add impetus to global economic recovery and growth, he added.
Green recovery in post-COVID era
Xi also called on all countries to achieve a green recovery of the world economy in the post-COVID era.
“Humankind can no longer afford to ignore the repeated warnings of nature and go down the beaten path of extracting resources without investing in conservation, pursuing development at the expense of protection, and exploiting resources without restoration,” Xi said.
He noted that the Paris Agreement on climate change charts the course for the world to transition to green and low-carbon development.
“It outlines the minimum steps to be taken to protect the Earth, our shared homeland, and all countries must take decisive steps to honor this agreement,” he said.
Countries should not breach the moral standard and should comply with international norms in competition, Xi said.
“It is natural for countries to have differences. What’s important is to address them through dialogue and consultation,” Xi said.
Countries may engage in competition, but such competition should be positive and healthy in nature, Xi said.
Major countries should act like major countries, he said, adding that they should provide more global public goods, take up their due responsibilities and live up to people’s expectations. – Xinhua, MPD
President Xi Jinping – seen on two giant screens –addresses the general debate of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York via video link from Beijing yesterday. – AFP
