Xi-Raisi Meeting - Zhong Haiping on Building a Maritime Community with a Shared Future - Li Shulei at BRI Media Forum: Build Consensus & Boost Confidence
Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy from the Wednesday, February 15, 2023, edition of the People’s Daily.
Page 1: The big story today is about Xi Jinping’s meeting with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi. Xinhua English has the full story. Xi said that the ties between the two countries had “withstood the tests of various international vicissitudes.”
The report says:
“China has always viewed and developed its relations with Iran from a strategic perspective, Xi said, noting that no matter how the international and regional situation changes, China will unswervingly develop friendly cooperation with Iran, push for new development of the China-Iran comprehensive strategic partnership, and play a positive role in world peace and human progress. Xi stressed that China supports Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and national dignity, supports Iran in resisting unilateralism and bullying, and opposes external forces interfering in Iran's internal affairs and undermining Iran's security and stability. China stands ready to continue mutual support with Iran on issues concerning each other's core interests, said the Chinese president. He noted that China is ready to work with Iran to implement bilateral comprehensive cooperation plan, deepen practical cooperation on trade, agriculture, industry and infrastructure, and import more high-quality Iranian agricultural products. ‘China is willing to continue cooperation with Iran under the Belt and Road Initiative to promote connectivity and expand people-to-people exchanges,’ Xi added. Xi said that maintaining stability in the Middle East is vital to the well-being of countries and people in the region and is crucial to safeguarding world peace, promoting global economic development and ensuring a stable energy supply. ‘China appreciates Iran's willingness to actively improve relations with its neighbors, and supports regional countries in resolving disputes through dialogue and consultation to achieve good-neighborly friendship,’ Xi said, expressing China's readiness to continue playing a constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability.”
It adds: Talking about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Xi said China will continue to take a constructive part in the negotiations on resuming the nuclear deal, support Iran in safeguarding its legitimate rights and interests, and work for an early and proper settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue.”
Among other things, Xinhua reports Raisi as saying: “Iran firmly supports and will actively participate in the Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative proposed by China, he said. Noting that both Iran and China are firmly opposed to unilateralism and hegemonism, as well as to external interference in internal affairs, Raisi said Iran firmly supports China in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Raisi said Iran is willing to strengthen communication with China on international and regional affairs, maintain good cooperation on multilateral occasions such as the SCO, jointly safeguard international fairness and justice, and maintain regional and world peace and security.”
The two sides reportedly signed a number of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of agriculture, trade, tourism, environmental protection, health, disaster relief, culture and sport. Also, a joint statement is expected. That should have more details about these agreements.
Also on the page is a report on Raisi’s meeting with Li Keqiang and Li Zhanshu. Xinhua’s report on the meeting with Li Keqiang says::
“China attaches great importance to the development of China-Iran relations and is willing to adhere to mutual respect and equal treatment with Iran to promote the comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level, maintain world peace, promote common development, and benefit the people of both sides, the premier said. China is willing to work with Iran to improve the level of practical cooperation, Li said, calling on both sides to implement the China-Iran comprehensive cooperation plan, promote cooperation on economy, trade and other fields, mutually expand product exports, promote the implementation of mutually beneficial projects conducive to improving people's livelihoods, increase personnel exchanges and consolidate the public opinion foundation of friendship between the two countries.”
Xinhua’s report on the meeting with Li Zhanshu says that Li noted that “China-Iran relations have become healthier and more stable in recent years.” “Li said the two countries should continue to support each other on issues concerning respective core interests, jointly uphold basic norms governing international relations, including non-interference in internal affairs, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries. He called on the legislatures of the two countries to strengthen friendly exchanges, provide legislative guarantees for implementing the consensus between the two heads of state, and share experience in governance.”
Finally, on Page 3, there’s a report on Qin Gang meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. Xinhua reports:
“China stands ready to work with Iran to deepen practical cooperation, strengthen people-to-people exchanges, implement the latest consensus reached by the two heads of state and push for new progress on the China-Iran comprehensive strategic partnership, Qin added. Qin said the two sides should continue to support each other on issues concerning core interests, strengthen coordination and cooperation on international and regional affairs, make joint efforts to promote enduring peace and stability in the region, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries and international fairness and justice.”
Abdollahian discussed the “latest progress in the negotiations on resuming implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and expressed appreciation for China's constructive role.”
Some useful data from IRNA in this Global Times piece: “China is Iran's largest trade partner, IRNA said, citing 10-month statistics from Iranian customs authorities. Iran's exports to Beijing stood at $12.6 billion, while it imported $12.7 billion worth of goods from China.”
Also on the front page is a report on the development of China’s charging infrastructure. The National Energy Administration informed that there were a total of 5.2 million units in the country as of 2022. Among these, around 650,000 were public charging facilities, bringing the total of such facilities to 1.8 million. The private charging facilities increased by 1.9 million last year, bringing the cumulative total to over 3.4 million. In 2022, the charging capacity for electric vehicles exceeded 40 billion kWh, a year-on-year increase of more than 85%. The report also informs that the NEA has set up a technical committee for standardisation of electric vehicle charging facilities. It has established a charging infrastructure standard system with independent intellectual property rights in China. 31 national standards and 26 industry standards have been issued so far. 记者近日从国家能源局获悉：2022年我国充电基础设施继续高速增长，年增长数量达到260万台左右，累计数量约520万台。其中，公共充电基础设施增长约65万台，累计数量达到180万台左右；私人充电基础设施增长超过190万台，累计数量超过340万台。近年来，我国充电基础设施快速发展，已建成世界上数量最多、分布最广的充电基础设施网络。同时，充换电运营市场取得较快发展。我国充电市场呈现出多元化发展态势，目前各类充电桩运营企业达3000余家。电动汽车充电量持续保持较快增长，2022年充电量超过400亿千瓦时，同比增长达到85%以上。技术与标准体系逐步成熟。国家能源局组建能源行业电动汽车充电设施标准化技术委员会，建立了具有中国自主知识产权的充电基础设施标准体系，累计发布国家标准31项、行业标准26项.
Page 2: A report on measures taken by the authorities in Chongqing to support private enterprises. The report talks about an agreement between the Chongqing Municipal Taxation Bureau and the Municipal Federation of Industry and Commerce. The agreement basically covers areas like providing publicity and guidance for private firms, enabling links to maintain supply chains, financial support, backing for those interested in specialisation and innovation, rights protection, etc. 《协议》建立起“联合调研、信息互通、定期会商”三项机制，推出宣传辅导、牵线补链、春雨润苗、专精特新、信用培育、权益保护六项行动，鼓励、支持、引导重庆民营企业发展壮大。对于部分民营企业来说，资金流紧张是发展难题之一.
The piece says that the added value of private enterprises in Chongqing last year was 1,740.44 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.0%. This was 0.4 percentage points higher than the GDP growth rate and accounted for 59.7% of the region’s GDP. In 2022, Chongqing implemented the tax refund and exemption policy resulting in easing burdens exceeding 75 billion yuan, of which the private economy enjoyed the reduction and exemption of around 54.83 billion yuan, accounting for 72.7%. 数据显示，2022年，重庆民营经济承压增长，实现增加值17404.4亿元，同比增长3.0%，高于GDP增速0.4个百分点，占GDP比重59.7%。2022年，重庆落实减免缓退税费超750亿元，其中民营经济享受减免缓退税费548.3亿元，占比达到72.7%.
There’s also an interview with officials discussing Document No. 1, which was published in entirety yesterday. Unfortunately, I missed out on doing the newsletter yesterday, owing to travel commitments. But I’ll cover this in detail with a breakdown of the document later in the week.
Page 3: There’s a Zhong Haiping article talking about building a “community with a shared future” in the maritime domain. The article says:
“In recent years, maritime security issues have emerged one after another, the marine ecological environment has become increasingly severe, and global ocean governance is facing various challenges. In April 2019, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the concept of building a maritime community with a shared future, which highlighted the harmonious coexistence between human beings and the oceans from a new perspective, provided a Chinese solution for global maritime governance, and contributed Chinese wisdom.”
“Maritime peace and tranquillity are related to the safety and interests of all countries in the world. Countries should respond to global challenges such as climate change and sea level rise with solidarity, and work together to address threats such as piracy, transnational crimes, smuggling and drug trafficking. Guided by the Global Security Initiative, China is ready to work with other countries to effectively defuse all kinds of maritime security threats and jointly build a maritime order of lasting peace and universal security. All countries should care for the ocean as they treat life, and protect marine ecology and biodiversity. China attaches great importance to the construction of marine ecological civilisation, and is continuing to strengthen the prevention and control of marine environmental pollution and the protection of marine biodiversity. It is willing to deepen cooperation with other countries in these fields…” 各国要以团结精神应对气候变暖、海平面上升等全球性挑战，合作应对海盗、跨国犯罪、走私贩毒等领域威胁。中国愿同各国以全球安全倡议为指引，有效化解各类海洋安全威胁，共同构建持久和平、普遍安全的海洋秩序。各国要像对待生命一样关爱海洋，保护海洋生态与生物多样性。中国高度重视海洋生态文明建设，正在持续加强海洋环境污染防治，保护海洋生物多样性，愿在这些领域深化与各国的合作，让蓝色星球永葆澄清底色，为子孙后代留下碧海蓝天.
The ocean is a treasure house of global resources, and we need to approach them with joint development. Zero-sum and the law of the jungle thinking are not the way to address this, and should have been consigned to the dustbin of history. We should respect differences in national conditions and legitimate maritime interests of all parties, bridge differences through dialogue and promote well-being through cooperation. China is committed to the path of cooperation featuring shelving disputes and pursuing joint development. We are actively exploring with our maritime neighbours the joint development of resources, and exploring a new path of Asian cooperation featuring mutual benefit and joint development. We should maintain stable and unimpeded maritime transport and industrial chains, and build an open world economy at a higher level through maritime openness and connectivity. We should completely, accurately and comprehensively implement the new development concept of innovation, coordination, green, openness and sharing, develop and utilise marine resources scientifically and in an orderly manner, and promote the sustainable development of the oceans. China will fully implement the Global Development Initiative proposed by General Secretary Xi Jinping, actively build a platform for maritime cooperation by promoting the ‘21st Century Maritime Silk Road’ and jointly building blue economic partnerships, in order to inject new vitality into the recovery of the world economy.” 海洋是全球资源的宝库，需要我们共同开发。零和思维、丛林法则没有出路，早该丢进历史的垃圾箱。要尊重各国国情差异，尊重各方合理的海洋利益诉求，坚持以对话弥合分歧，以合作增进福祉。中国坚持走搁置争议、共同开发的合作之路，同海上邻国积极探讨资源共同开发，走出一条互利共赢、携手发展的亚洲合作新路。要保持海上运输和产业链的稳定畅通，通过海洋的开放融通，建设更高水平的开放型世界经济。要完整、准确、全面贯彻创新、协调、绿色、开放、共享的新发展理念，科学有序开发利用海洋资源，推动海洋可持续发展。中方将全力落实习近平总书记提出的全球发展倡议，通过推进“21世纪海上丝绸之路”和共建蓝色经济伙伴关系，积极搭建海洋合作平台，为世界经济复苏注入新的活力.
The next paragraph states that the maritime domain is key to “human survival and development” and needs “common management.”
“Unilateralism and hegemonism are unpopular and doomed to failure. To uphold true multilateralism and safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core, everyone's affairs should be discussed. It is important to uphold the maritime order based on international law, interpret and apply the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in a complete, accurate and comprehensive manner, and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of all parties under the law. Regional maritime governance should be promoted in light of local conditions. 2022 marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. As the first political document reached between China and ASEAN countries on the South China Sea issue, the Declaration has played a stabilising role in maintaining the situation in the South China Sea and created a peaceful regional environment for the development of China-ASEAN relations. China is willing to speed up the consultation process with ASEAN countries on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, speed up the construction of regional governance rules that are in line with the interests of all parties, and truly build the South China Sea into a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation.” 海洋是人类生存发展的空间，需要我们共同管理。单边主义、霸权主义不得人心，注定以失败告终。要坚持真正的多边主义，维护以联合国为核心的国际体系，大家的事情大家商量着办。要维护以国际法为基础的海洋秩序，完整、准确、全面解释和适用《联合国海洋法公约》，维护各方依法享有的正当权益。要因地制宜推进区域海洋治理。2022年是《南海各方行为宣言》签署20周年。《宣言》作为中国和东盟国家在南海问题上达成的首份政治文件，为维护南海局势发挥了稳定器作用，也为中国—东盟关系发展营造了和平的地区环境。中国愿同东盟国家加快推进“南海行为准则”磋商进程，加快构建符合各方利益的区域治理规则，把南海真正建设成为和平之海、友谊之海、合作之海.
The final paragraph of the article calls building a community with a shared future in the maritime domain an “inevitable requirement for implementing the spirit of the 20th Party Congress” and that “China is willing to work with other countries on the basis of equality, mutual benefit, and mutual respect.”
While we are talking about Beijing’s vision of harmonious peace, friendship and cooperation. Do check out this from the BBC on the recent developments in those waters:
“The Philippines has accused China of shining a "military grade" laser light to scuttle a resupply mission to a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. The laser glare temporarily blinded the crew of the Filipino coast guard boat, forcing it to retreat. The vessel was headed to a marooned navy vessel that Manila has used for years to claim the Second Thomas Shoal. China has in the past used water cannon and sirens to enforce its claim to much of the South China Sea. The incident, on 6 February, was only reported publicly on Monday. It was a "clear violation of Philippine sovereign rights" in waters that Manila refers to as the West Philippine Sea, the Filipino coastguard said in a statement. Aside from flashing laser light twice, the Chinese ship also made "dangerous manoeuvres" about 150 yards (137m) from the Filipino ship's starboard side, authorities said.”
Also on the page is a report on the work of the Chinese relief and rescue team in Turkiye and another article in the series that showcases positive views of foreigners with regard to China’s COVID management. The latter offers inputs today from “three foreign friends working in China” - a Bangladeshi doctor, a Pakistani journalist and a Malaysian businessman.
Page 4: A report informing that 120 guests from 54 mainstream media outlets in 33 countries and regions attended the 2023 BRI forum for media exchanges. Propaganda chief Li Shulei spoke at the forum. He called on media outlets to “build consensus, boost confidence, tell the story of BRI for common development, and actively spread the idea of sharing opportunities, jointly meeting challenges and creating prosperity through vivid reports and rational analyses.” 李书磊强调，推动共建“一带一路”行稳致远，各国媒体应凝聚共识、提振信心，讲好共谋发展的丝路故事，通过生动的报道和理性的分析，积极传播共享机遇、共迎挑战、共创繁荣的理念...
Page 9: I am not going into the details because it is basically repeating points made by earlier commentaries. But the lead article on the theory page is by the Xi thought research centre at the Central Party School, calling Xi’s recent speech a “scientific guide to comprehensively promote the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-style modernisation.”
The piece reinforces the idea that: “The entire Party should profoundly understand the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, resolutely achieve the two safeguards, constantly improve political judgement, understanding and execution, unswervingly maintain a high degree of unity with the CPC Central Committee with comrade Xi Jinping at the core in terms of thought, politics and actions, and earnestly use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a new era to arm the mind, guide practice and promote work.” 全党要深刻领悟“两个确立”的决定性意义，坚决做到“两个维护”，不断提高政治判断力、政治领悟力、政治执行力，坚定不移在思想上政治上行动上同以习近平同志为核心的党中央保持高度一致，切实用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想武装头脑、指导实践、推动工作.
Page 15: The top story on the international page says that “the proliferation of guns is a serious social problem in the United States. At the same time, the illegal flow of guns from the United States into neighbouring countries has also caused a surge in gun violence cases there too.” This is basically drawn from reporting by American outlets such as NPR, ABC and statements by officials in Canada and Mexico.
The Michigan State University shooting is covered in a separate report on the page.
Other Stories:
I thought I’d list some interesting developments, which have not been covered in PD.
Reuters reports: “China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) is close to finalising a deal to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from QatarEnergy over nearly 30 years from the Middle Eastern exporter's massive North Field expansion project, three people with knowledge of the matter said. If sealed, this would be the second such deal between major LNG exporter Qatar and the world's no.2 LNG buyer, as Beijing looks to beef up gas supply and diversify its sources in a drive to replace coal and cut carbon emissions.”
While Wang Yi is visiting France, Italy, Hungary and Russia from Tuesday to February 22, Xinjiang governor Erkin Tuniyaz’s anticipated trip to Europe has been called off. Politico reported: “News of the trip being called off was relayed to people invited to his reception parties planned by Chinese diplomats in France and Belgium. ‘Due to scheduling reasons … [the event] is postponed,’ according to an email sent to the EU guests in Brussels…”
SCMP reports that Beijing seems to be China’s AI capital. “Beijing was home to 1,048 ‘core AI companies’ as of October last year, making up more than one-third of the total number of such firms in the country That rapid development has attracted more than 40,000 AI talent to the city, accounting for more than 60 per cent of the country’s total in the field.”
WSJ reports: Don’t Count on China to Save the World Economy. The chart below offers a good summary of the key points from the report.