Science & Technology Ethics - Five Strategic Advantages - Reducing Iron Ore Import Dependence - Wang Meets Algerian & Tanzanian FMs - Wang on Ukraine War

Mar 21, 2022

Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy from the Monday, March 21, 2022, edition of the People’s Daily.

Page 1: One of the lead articles on the page today is a long feature on the five roads and five strategic advantages tXi Jinping had spoken about during the Two Sessions. The piece says that

“The important judgement of the ‘five strategic advantages’ contains profound thinking, shines with the light of the times, and clearly expounds the truth that ‘time and momentum are on our side’.” “五个战略性有利条件”的重大论断，蕴含着深邃思考，绽放着时代光芒，深刻阐明了“时与势在我们一边”的道理.

It argues that China is at “a new historical juncture.” “The year 2022 is an important year for building a modern socialist country in an all-round way and marching into a new journey towards the goal of the second century. The Party will hold the 20th National Congress this year. Looking around the world, the international situation has undergone major new changes, and the trend of peace and development is facing severe challenges. The world is neither peaceful nor tranquil. The impact of the once-in-a-century changes and the once-in-a-century pandemic are intertwined, economic globalisation is facing counter-currents, the game among major powers is becoming increasingly fierce, the situation in Ukraine is changing rapidly, and the world is entering a new period of turbulent change. Looking around the country, the tasks of reform, development and stability are arduous. China’s economic development is faced with the triple pressures of demand contraction, supply shock and expected weakening. It is crucial to maintain a stable and healthy economic environment, a prosperous and peaceful social environment and a clean and upright political environment.” 2022年是进入全面建设社会主义现代化国家、向第二个百年奋斗目标进军新征程的重要一年，我们党将召开第二十次全国代表大会。放眼全球，国际形势发生新的重大变化，和平与发展的时代主题面临严峻挑战，世界既不太平也不安宁。百年变局和世纪疫情相互交织，经济全球化遭遇逆流，大国博弈日趋激烈，乌克兰局势风云变幻，世界进入新的动荡变革期。环顾国内，改革发展稳定任务艰巨繁重，中国经济发展面临需求收缩、供给冲击、预期转弱三重压力，保持平稳健康的经济环境、国泰民安的社会环境、风清气正的政治环境至为关键.

The piece then quotes Li Daokui, Director of the Institute for China’s Economic Practice and Thinking at Tsinghua University as saying that amid all the changes in the world and the slowing down of China’s growth, it is inevitable that some people might think that the period of strategic opportunity for China’s development has passed. But, the judgement of the five strategic advantages “is a major judgement based on the national condition and world conditions and the objective laws of the development of big countries, which fully shows that China’s development is still in an important period of strategic opportunities at present and in the future.” “随着经济增速下降和国际形势变化，社会上难免出现一些焦虑情绪，担心我国发展的战略机遇期已经过去。”清华大学中国经济思想与实践研究院院长李稻葵说，“五个战略性有利条件”的提出，正是立足国情、世情，从大国发展的客观规律出发作出的重大判断，充分表明当前和今后一个时期我国发展仍然处于重要战略机遇期.

He adds that “such a period of strategic opportunity is not something to be waited for or hoped for. It is something to be created step-by-step by doing everything well in a steadfast manner.” 这样的战略机遇期不是等来的、盼来的，是踏踏实实办好每一件事情、一步步创造出来的.

This is followed by more praise for the five strategic advantages, which are only a “sober strategic judgement, but also demonstrate China’s strategic confidence owing to practical achievements in the new era.” In terms of practical achievements, economic growth, COVID containment and the Governance of China as opposed to the Chaos of the West are highlighted.

After a lot more praise for the strategic judgement that is the five strategic advantages, the piece then talks about the first of these, i.e., the strong leadership of the Party. This talks about Xi’s core status and him leading the efforts to contain the pandemic. In addition, it highlights the efforts to “fight corruption with unprecedented courage, push the situation in Hong Kong to achieve a major turning point from chaos to governance, and resolutely resist bullying and defend the fundamental interests of the country and the people…Since the 18th Party Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has responded calmly and made resolute decisions, and with strong synergies, strong mobilisation and efficient execution, it has turned the ‘impossible’ into ‘certainties’ time and again.” 以前所未有的勇气正风肃纪反腐，推动香港局势实现由乱到治的重大转折，以坚决姿态抵制霸凌行径捍卫国家和人民根本利益……党的十八大以来，无论遇到什么样的惊涛骇浪，以习近平同志为核心的党中央都能从容应对、果断决策，以超强整合力、强大动员力和高效执行力，一次次将“不可能”变成“一定能”.

The piece also talks about 17 special flights evacuating Chinese citizens from Ukraine from March 5 to March 19. Of course, it does not tell us why these people needed to be evacuated or why there were no earlier advisories by Beijing asking its citizens to leave Ukraine before February 24. The evacuation is simply presented as a symbol of a “strong motherland and a safe environment” that supports the “hundreds of millions of Chinese children.” 强大的祖国、安全的环境，永远是亿万华夏儿女的依靠。3月5日至19日，已累计有17架接返自乌克兰撤离中国公民的临时航班安全回国.

Next, there is a piece drawing from Xi’s comments on Covid containment last week. This is interesting because it basically picks on this point that Xi made: “achieve maximum effect in prevention and control with minimum cost, and to reduce the impact on socioeconomic development as much as possible.”

Zhang Liye, Deputy Director of the Jilin Municipal Health Commission, is quoted as saying that the province has mobilised grid, building and unit level leadership to support containment efforts. In particular, door-to-door testing for pregnant women, infants and young children is being carried out.

The report also informs about special work being done at ports to ensure containment of imported cases. From March 12th, all primary and secondary schools in Shanghai have moved to online teaching. The article talks about maintaining stability in prices of and the stable supply of essential goods. The article also quotes Zhang Haibo, Party Secretary of Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, as saying that “it is necessary to strengthen the implementation of policies and measures such as tax reduction and fee reduction, and introduce more policies that are conducive to steady growth.” Zhang adds: “We are working with relevant departments in the province to help enterprises do a good job in inter-provincial and inter-city personnel mobility, production support, logistics and transportation, etc.”

It’s useful to note amid this that life appears to be returning to normalcy in Shenzhen at least.

Next, there’s the full Opinions on Strengthening the Ethical Governance of Science and Technology issued by the General Offices of the State Council and CCP Central Committee. The document says that:

“At present, with the rapid development of science and technology innovation in China, the challenges of science and technology ethics are increasing day by day. However, there are still some problems in the governance of science and technology ethics, such as imperfect regulatory mechanisms, imperfect administrative systems, and unbalanced development of fields, which have been unable to meet the realistic needs of the development of science and technology innovation. In order to further improve the ethical system of science and technology, enhance the ability of ethical governance of science and technology, effectively prevent and control the ethical risks related to science and technology, continuously promote science and technology to be a force for good and benefit mankind, and realise high-level self-reliance of science and technology, the following opinions are put forward on strengthening ethical governance of science and technology.” 当前，我国科技创新快速发展，面临的科技伦理挑战日益增多，但科技伦理治理仍存在体制机制不健全、制度不完善、领域发展不均衡等问题，已难以适应科技创新发展的现实需要。为进一步完善科技伦理体系，提升科技伦理治理能力，有效防控科技伦理风险，不断推动科技向善、造福人类，实现高水平科技自立自强，现就加强科技伦理治理提出如下意见.

After the Guiding Ideology section, the second section talks about General Requirements.

This begins by emphasising “responsible innovation” through an “ethics first” approach.
It calls for “accelerating the construction of a legal system of ethical governance of science and technology.”
It talks about the need for “agile governance,” which refers to strengthening “early warning, tracking and assessment of ethical risks related to scientific and technological developments, the need to make adjustments in a timely and dynamic manner and quickly and flexibly responding to ethical challenges brought about by scientific and technological innovation.”
It adds that “we should follow the law of scientific and technological innovation, and establish and improve a scientific and technological ethics system that is in line with China’s national conditions.”
Finally, “adhere to the concept of open development, strengthen foreign exchanges, establish a multi-party cooperation mechanism, build consensus and form synergy. Actively promote global ethical governance of science and technology, and contribute Chinese wisdom and Chinese ideas.”

——伦理先行。加强源头治理，注重预防，将科技伦理要求贯穿科学研究、技术开发等科技活动全过程，促进科技活动与科技伦理协调发展、良性互动，实现负责任的创新。——依法依规。坚持依法依规开展科技伦理治理工作，加快推进科技伦理治理法律制度建设。——敏捷治理。加强科技伦理风险预警与跟踪研判，及时动态调整治理方式和伦理规范，快速、灵活应对科技创新带来的伦理挑战。——立足国情。立足我国科技发展的历史阶段及社会文化特点，遵循科技创新规律，建立健全符合我国国情的科技伦理体系。——开放合作。坚持开放发展理念，加强对外交流，建立多方协同合作机制，凝聚共识，形成合力。积极推进全球科技伦理治理，贡献中国智慧和中国方案.

The next section talks about the ethical principles that matter. These include:

“Promoting the well-being of humankind: Science and technology activities should adhere to the people-centred development thought, which is conducive to promoting economic development, social progress, improvement of people's livelihood and ecological environment protection…”
“Respect for the right to life: Scientific and technological activities should avoid injury or potential threat to human life safety, physical health, mental and psychological health to the greatest extent, respect human dignity and personal privacy, and guarantee the right to know and choice of those engaged in science and technology activities. The use of experimental animals should meet the requirements of ‘reduction, substitution and optimization’.”
“Adhere to fairness and justice: Scientific and technological activities should respect differences in religious beliefs, cultural traditions, etc., treat different social groups fairly, justly and inclusively, and prevent discrimination and prejudice.”
Reasonable risk control: Science and technology activities should objectively evaluate and prudently treat the uncertainty and risks of technology application, and strive to avoid and prevent possible risks, prevent misuse and abuse of scientific and technological achievements, and avoid endangering social security, public security, biological security and ecological security.
Maintaining openness and transparency: Scientific and technological activities should encourage stakeholders and the public to participate reasonably, and establish a disclosure mechanism for scientific and technological activities involving major and sensitive ethical issues. Transparency and objectivity should be enhanced when publishing information related to scientific and technological activities.

二、明确科技伦理原则（一）增进人类福祉。科技活动应坚持以人民为中心的发展思想，有利于促进经济发展、社会进步、民生改善和生态环境保护，不断增强人民获得感、幸福感、安全感，促进人类社会和平发展和可持续发展。（二）尊重生命权利。科技活动应最大限度避免对人的生命安全、身体健康、精神和心理健康造成伤害或潜在威胁，尊重人格尊严和个人隐私，保障科技活动参与者的知情权和选择权。使用实验动物应符合“减少、替代、优化”等要求。（三）坚持公平公正。科技活动应尊重宗教信仰、文化传统等方面的差异，公平、公正、包容地对待不同社会群体，防止歧视和偏见。（四）合理控制风险。科技活动应客观评估和审慎对待不确定性和技术应用的风险，力求规避、防范可能引发的风险，防止科技成果误用、滥用，避免危及社会安全、公共安全、生物安全和生态安全。（五）保持公开透明。科技活动应鼓励利益相关方和社会公众合理参与，建立涉及重大、敏感伦理问题的科技活动披露机制。公布科技活动相关信息时应提高透明度，做到客观真实.

In terms of the governance system, the document puts forward four points:

First, “the National Science and technology Ethics Committee is responsible for guiding, coordinating and promoting the construction of the national science and technology ethics governance system. The Ministry of Science and Technology is responsible for the routine work of the Secretariat of the National Science and Technology Ethics Committee.”
Second, “institutions of higher learning, scientific research institutions, medical and health institutions, enterprises and other units should carry out the main responsibility of scientific and technological ethics management.” They must, based on actual conditions, “set up the science and technology ethics review committee.” Meanwhile, “units engaged in life sciences, medicine, artificial intelligence and other scientific and technological activities whose research involves sensitive fields of scientific and technological ethics should establish scientific and technological ethics review committees.” 从事生命科学、医学、人工智能等科技活动的单位，研究内容涉及科技伦理敏感领域的，应设立科技伦理（审查）委员会.
The third point is about supporting social groups and associations
The fourth says that science and technology workers should “consciously practice the principles of science and technology ethics, stick to the bottom line of science and technology ethics, and actively report and resolutely resist behaviours that violate the requirements of science and technology ethics.”

The next section talks about the need to formulate ethical norms and standards, particularly related to life sciences, medicine and AI. It talks about establishing guidelines for the structure and responsibilities of ethical review committees. It further calls for improving the “legalisation of ethical governance of science and technology,” with calls for strengthening legislation and strict enforcement. Finally, the section calls for think tanks, social organisations, scientific and technical personnel to carry out theoretical research related to science and technology ethics and calling on them to “actively promote and participate in major international scientific and technological ethics issues and rule-making.”

The next section discusses strengthening ethical review and supervision. It says:

“To carry out scientific and technological activities, scientific and technological ethics risk assessment or review should be carried out. Science and technology activities involving human beings and experimental animals shall be examined and approved by the Science and Technology Ethics (Review) Committee of the unit according to the regulations. Units that do not have the conditions to set up the Science and Technology Ethics (Review) Committee shall entrust other units to conduct the review. The Science and Technology Ethics (Review) Committee should adhere to the principles of science, independence, justice and transparency, carry out the scientific and technological ethics review, supervision and guidance of scientific and technological activities, and effectively ensure the scientific and technological ethics.” 开展科技活动应进行科技伦理风险评估或审查。涉及人、实验动物的科技活动，应当按规定由本单位科技伦理（审查）委员会审查批准，不具备设立科技伦理（审查）委员会条件的单位，应委托其他单位科技伦理（审查）委员会开展审查。科技伦理（审查）委员会要坚持科学、独立、公正、透明原则，开展对科技活动的科技伦理审查、监督与指导，切实把好科技伦理关.

The next chunk talks about the need for improving the emergency review mechanism of science and technology ethics in cases of emergencies, such as public health events. It also talks about the supervision of the work of Science and Technology Ethics (Review) Committees. In addition, it stresses the need to improve “the monitoring and early warning mechanism” related to ethical risks. The final point in this bit is about supervision, investigation and punishments for violations. It says that the primary responsibility for this lies with the specific institutions and enterprises.

Page 2: I am not detailing this, but there’s an interview with officials related to China’s steel industry. This draws on the recently published Opinions on Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Iron and Steel Industry. This was jointly put out by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

Some bits that I thought were worth noting:

Luo Tiejun, vice president of the China Iron and Steel Association, says that during the 13th FYP period, the cumulative production capacity of crude steel was reduced by more than 150 million tons, and the labour productivity in the main steel industry increased from 527 tons per person to 850 tons per person per year.
China’s iron ore dependence on foreign countries during the 13th FYP period was as high as 80%. Luo Tiejun argues that the development of domestic iron ore resources and the output of scrap steel resources are insufficient; also overseas iron ore resources supply channels are too concentrated, and the proportion of equity mines was low. The key, therefore, for China is to “enhance resource security and establish a stable and reliable diversified raw material supply system.”
Li Xinchuang from the Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute believes that “iron ore is an important strategic resource related to the national economy and people’s livelihood, and the establishment of a reserve system is expected to become an important control measure in order to stabilise market prices and ensure the safety of industrial chain.”

Here’s a related Global Times report on the latest CISA plan. The new plan calls to effectively change the sourcing of China’s iron resources, while also addressing shortcomings in the iron and steel industry chain, reducing external dependence of iron ore in the period of two to three five-year plans. Under the plan, by 2025 domestic mine production, scrap steel consumption and overseas equity mines are expected to reach 370 million tons, 300 million tons and 220 million tons respectively, an increase of 100 million tons, 70 million tons and 100 million tons compared with 2020.

All this is crucial to note from an Indian perspective, given that iron ore is a key Indian export to China.

Page 3: A couple of reports to note. First, Wang Yi’s chat with the foreign ministers of Algeria and Tanzania. Xinhua reports:

Speaking to Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra, Wang said “that apart from certain countries that are preoccupied with geographical games, there are many countries like China and Algeria that have long histories and favor peace and justice. He called on such countries to join hands and enhance unity and coordination to promote the process of democracy in international relations. Lamamra said that Algeria appreciates China's position on the Ukraine crisis and believes that China's approach, which stands for international fairness and justice, and eyes the promotion of peace, stability and security, is right and promising.”

Speaking to Tanzanian Foreign Minister Liberata Mulamula, Wang said “China is willing to view its relations with Tanzania from a strategic and long-term perspective. Wang said that China stands ready to continue to deepen comprehensive cooperative partnership with Tanzania and make greater contributions to Africa's self-reliant development capabilities.”

It’s really something that these ministers are visiting China but still the talks are being held via video link, as per the image in Xinhua.

Second, Wang’s comments on Ukraine during a press briefing after holding talks with Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra. Xinhua reports:

“Wang told the press that after exchanging views with many foreign ministers from Asian or African countries, he felt that many countries, like China, are following closely the developments of the Ukraine crisis, and share a lot of common language. We all believe that the purposes and principles of the UN Charter should be observed, international disputes should be resolved peacefully, and the parties concerned should realize ceasefire and put an end to the war as quickly as possible, he said. Noting that during discussions at the UN General Assembly on the Ukraine issue, China, Algeria and quite a number of countries abstained in the voting, Wang said abstention is also an attitude. It is to give peace a chance and shows disapproval of using war and sanctions to address disputes, and it is a responsible attitude. ‘At the same time, we are of the view that the Ukraine issue has not come to this point by accident. It is the result of the confluence of various factors and an eruption of the tensions that have built up over the years,’ said Wang, adding that what lies at the heart is the issue of European security, and Nato's move of expanding eastward without limit merits reflection.

“He said that from the longer-term perspective, parties in Europe should follow the principle of indivisible security and, based on respecting each other's legitimate concerns, pursue dialogue and negotiation to build a balanced, effective and sustainable regional security architecture.

‘First, it is widely believed that when addressing regional and international hotspot issues, war and sanctions are not the only options, and dialogue and negotiation is the fundamental way out,’ said Wang, adding that the current circumstances make it more important to stick to this direction.
‘Second, the momentum of world economic recovery should not be disrupted,’ said Wang, adding that in the context of the ongoing pandemic, escalating unilateral sanctions will fracture the global industrial and supply chains and hurt the livelihood of people of all countries, who have no responsibility for paying for geopolitical conflicts and major-country competition.
Third, all countries have the right to independently decide their external policies, and should not be forced to choose sides, Wang said. He added that when dealing with complex issues and divergent views, one should not opt for the simplistic approach of ‘friend or foe’ and ‘black or white’. It is particularly important to resist Cold War mentality and oppose bloc confrontation.
‘Fourth, the sovereign independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected at all times. This principle applies to all countries and regions. There should be no exception, still less double standards,’ Wang said.”

Also on the page, we have the full China-Algeria joint statement. Point 1 says that “the two sides reaffirmed their firm support for each other on issues concerning each other’s core interests and major concerns. The Algerian side said it abides by the One-China policy and supports China’s position on human rights, Xinjiang-related and Hong Kong-related issues. Human rights should not be politicised or used as a pressure tool in international relations.”

The document also talks about the situation in Libya and Mali along with calling for the need to ensure that the Palestinian issue is “resolved in accordance with relevant United Nations resolutions, ensuring the right of the Palestinian people to establish an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.” It also calls for close “coordination and cooperation in international multilateral affairs” between the two sides. Finally on the Ukraine war, the document says:

“The two sides believe that the purposes and principles of the UN Charter should be upheld and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected. We should adhere to the principle of indivisibility of security and accommodate the legitimate security concerns of parties concerned. Disputes should be settled peacefully through dialogue and negotiation. We should oppose indiscriminate unilateral sanctions that have no basis in international law and avoid undermining international rules and harming the livelihood of all countries. The humanitarian situation should be eased and the two sides are ready to make joint efforts to this end.” –

(Quick thought: Note how easily Beijing talks about sanctions not having basis in international law but does not condemn an invasion of a sovereign country as a violation of international law. Of course, when it comes to that, there is a “confluence of various factors” that led to the war and it takes more than a day to freeze three feet of ice, etc.)

Anyway, if you have not yet read comments by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng on Ukraine over the weekend, do check them out.

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Science & Technology Ethics - Five Strategic Advantages - Reducing Iron Ore Import Dependence - Wang Meets Algerian & Tanzanian FMs - Wang on Ukraine War

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