This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
At the beginning of 2023 China signed a Memorandum of Understanding on BRI construction with Turkmenistan and signed an updated BRI memorandum with the Philippines.
This fully demonstrated that the initiative meets the needs of world development, conforms to the expectations of the international community and always enjoys strong resilience and vitality.
Visitors eye Belt and Road Initiative products from participating countries at the 19th China-ASEAN Expo held in Nanning, South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on September 16. (Photo by Yu Xiangquan/People's Daily Online)
Belt and Road cooperation embraces the historical trend of economic globalization, responds to the call for improving the global governance system and meets people's longing for a better life, which is the fundamental reason why it always has strong resilience and vitality.
So far China has signed more than 200 BRI cooperation agreements with 151 countries and 32 international organizations.
In its latest Global Economic Prospects report released on January 10, the World Bank slashed its 2023 global economic growth forecast to 1.7 percent, 1.3 percentage points lower than projected in June.
As economic globalization is encountering headwinds and global economic recovery is in the doldrums, BRI construction is playing a more important role in boosting the economic growth of relevant countries and regions and promoting the common development of all countries.
Containers are loaded into a China-Europe freight train at a platform of the Yiwu-Xinjiang-Europe cargo line in Jinhua city, East China's Zhejiang Province on January. 6. (Photo by Hu Xiaofei/People's Daily Online)
A research report released by the World Bank in 2019 showed that BRI transportation infrastructure projects, if fully implemented, would generate $1.6 trillion in benefits annually in global revenue by 2030, or 1.3 percent of global GDP.
The Chinese initiative is generating opportunities and benefits for the entire world as more countries carry out high-quality cooperation under the BRI framework.
The initiative has provided new platforms for international trade and investment. Data shows that the cumulative value of trade in goods between China and countries along the BRI routes reached nearly $11 trillion from 2013 to 2021, while two-way investment hit more than $230 billion.
High-quality BRI cooperation conforms to the trend of the “Fourth Industrial Revolution.” Cooperation has injected new vitality into the ancient Silk Road by seizing opportunities of digital, internet-based and intelligent development, fostering new growth drivers, exploring new development pathways, and building the digital Silk Road and the Silk Road of innovation.
British sociologist Martin Albrow said that BRI has connected China's peaceful development with the prosperity and happiness of the whole world.
As an important international public good China has provided for the world to help improve global governance, high-quality BRI cooperation draws on past experience, values innovation, takes the initiative, emphasizes seeking common ground while reserving differences, and promotes incremental reform of the existing international order and rules.
FAW Haima Automobile employees produce cars for export to the Philippines at the company's production base in South China's Hainan Province on September 5. (Photo by Shi Zhonghua/People's Daily Online)
BRI and its guiding principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits have been included in relevant documents of the United Nations, the Group of 20, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and other organizations, becoming an important consensus on global governance.
The establishment of multilateral development institutions and cooperation platforms, such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Silk Road Fund, will contribute to the building of a fairer and more reasonable global governance system.
China's circle of friends for construction of the BRI has expanded continuously while the quality of cooperation has kept improving.
China will consider holding the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation this year to provide fresh impetus for the development and prosperity of the world.
At a new starting point, China is ready to work together with various parties to continue promoting high-quality construction of the road for peace, prosperity, opening up, green development, innovation and connected civilizations, so that the initiative, a project of the century, will better benefit people across the world.