White paper released on China and the world in the new era

By Zhong Sheng

The State Council Information Office of China published a white paper titled “China and the World in the New Era” on Sept. 27, introducing China’s development achievements, paths and trend concerned by the world in a systematic manner.

By expounding the relationship between China and the world, the white paper guides people to view China from a broader perspective and to better understand China’s interaction with the world.

The white paper points out that China is a member of the world, and China’s development is closely related to the rest of the world. Over the past 70 years, the country has stood up, grown rich and is becoming strong. Every achievement it has made justified its path of independent development, and drew closer its relationship with the world.

China has become the world’s second largest economy, largest manufacturer, largest trader in goods, and second largest consumer of commodities, which indicates China’s importance in the changing global pattern.

How to perceive China’s path, understand China’s development trend and conduct positive interaction with China has become an important topic of the international society.

To understand that China is a member of the world, one should see that the country has injected positive energy to global peace and development. The country sticks to independent foreign policy of peace, and follows the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence (mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence).

Over the past 70 years, China has not provoked a single war or conflict, nor invaded a single square of foreign land. China has cut the size of its armed forces and taken active part in UN peacemaking operations, consistently serving as a power of peace.

In pursuit of domestic construction and reform, the country is further expanding opening-up and seeking common development. Opening even wider to the world in the new era, China is making the cake of global development larger and larger.

To understand that China is a member of the world, one should also see that China’s development is bringing opportunities to the world. China’s GDP accounts for nearly 16 percent of the world’s total, contributing nearly 30 percent to the global economic growth. The country’s development with higher quality will create better opportunities for the world.

According to a McKinsey Global Institute report, by 2040, the integration between China and the rest of the world is expected to drive economic value of $22 trillion to $37 trillion, equivalent to 15 to 26 percent of global GDP. Strengthened cooperation between China and other countries will create enormous economic value.

To understand that China is a member of the world, it’s important to see that the Chinese Dream shares similar aspiration with the world. Dreaming of prosperity and rejuvenation for their country, and happiness for the people, the Chinese will contribute more energy to the building of a better world.

The world is undergoing profound change unseen in a century which brings not only risks and challenges, but also opportunities. The rise of China and other emerging market and developing countries helps upholding the international system with the UN at its core and international justice.

While seeking happiness for the people, revitalization for the nation and common development for the world, China is actively promoting the building of a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind. It is also advancing the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and promoting a new model of economic globalization.

The country is committed to expanding peaceful and win-win development with other countries, and its wisdom, practices and achievements have been broadly commended by the international society.

Looking back at the successes of the past seven decades, the Chinese people are proud of all their achievements. But they will not fall into complacency or stagnation.

In this new era, China will not waver in its commitment to forging ahead on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, pursuing mutual learning and mutually beneficial cooperation, and working together with the rest of the world.

In the future, China will embrace the world in a more open and inclusive manner, engage in more interactions with other countries, and bring more progress and prosperity to itself and the rest of the world.

As the white paper says, in the new era, China and the world will share a better and brighter future.(Zhong Sheng is a penname often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy.)