Ministry of Foreign Affairs: China actively participates in the reform and development of the global governance system.
The past decade has been a period during which China has actively participated in the reform and development of the global governance system. Some Western media have expressed concern that China is attempting to alter the international order. At today’s (the 19th) regular press conference, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin briefed Chinese and foreign journalists on China’s position and role in global governance.
Wang Wenbin introduced that since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China has consistently stood on the side of solidarity and cooperation, on the side of the trend of the times, and on the side of the common interests of the vast majority of countries. China has participated in the reform and construction of the global governance system with unprecedented breadth, depth, and intensity, promoting the establishment of a new type of international relations characterized by mutual respect, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation, and advancing the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
China is a steadfast defender of the current international order. We have consistently and firmly upheld the international system centered on the United Nations, the international order based on international law, and the multilateral trading regime anchored by the World Trade Organization. Over the past decade, China’s contributions to the UN budget have steadily increased, making it the second-largest contributor to both the UN budget and peacekeeping assessments. We have actively and comprehensively fulfilled our WTO accession commitments, significantly easing market access and continuously promoting high-level opening-up. As a result, China’s overall import tariff rate has dropped from 15.3% to 7.4%, and we have opened nearly 120 of the 160 sub-sectors covered by the WTO’s trade in services classification. Moreover, we have streamlined nearly 200,000 pieces of legislation and regulations. China has also actively participated in and promoted positive outcomes at the 12th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, demonstrating its commitment to strengthening solidarity and cooperation and safeguarding the multilateral trading system.
China is also an active contributor to safeguarding world peace, promoting common development, and addressing global challenges. President Xi Jinping has advocated for building a global partnership for development that is characterized by solidarity, equality, balance, and inclusiveness, as well as a vision of security that is common, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable. He has put forward the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative, which have been widely welcomed by the international community. China was the first country to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, and over the past decade, its average contribution to global economic growth has reached 38.6%, making it the primary driving force behind global economic growth. China actively participates in mediating hot-spot issues such as the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, the Iranian nuclear issue, and the Afghan crisis, promoting political solutions. It is the permanent member of the UN Security Council that has dispatched the largest number of peacekeeping personnel. Chinese warships have participated in anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden for 14 consecutive years. Moreover, China has proposed the International Cooperation Initiative on Food Security and the Global Data Security Initiative, facilitated the adoption of the Paris Agreement, announced its “dual carbon” goals, and provided more than 2.2 billion vaccine doses to over 120 countries and international organizations, making significant contributions to addressing global challenges.
China remains a responsible major country that is committed to promoting the reform and improvement of the global governance system. China advocates a vision of global governance based on extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and is driving the G20 toward a transition into a long-term governance mechanism. China has initiated the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank, creating new platforms for cooperation in global economic governance and fostering the building of an open world economy. China is dedicated to deepening BRICS cooperation, developing a broad “BRICS Plus” platform, and continuously advancing the enhancement of the representation and voice of emerging market countries and developing countries in international affairs.
No matter how the international landscape may shift and change, China’s commitment to practicing true multilateralism will remain unchanged; our efforts to improve global governance will not waver; and our actions to promote global cooperation will stay firm. We will uphold openness and inclusiveness, rejecting closed-door exclusivity; we will adhere to the rule of international law, rejecting unilateral supremacy; we will champion consultation and cooperation, shunning conflict and confrontation; and we will keep pace with the times, eschewing stagnation and self-isolation. We will continue to actively participate in the reform and development of the global governance system, advance the democratization of international relations, and push global governance toward a more just and equitable direction. Through concrete actions, we will contribute our wisdom and strength to addressing the global governance deficit, tackling global challenges, and fostering the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
