By H. E. CONG Peiwu, Chinese Ambassador to Canada
The year 2023 saw numerous difficulties in global economic recovery, outbreaks of conflicts in multiple regions, and people in some areas suffering from the agony of war. On the eve of 2024, Chinese President Xi Jinping extended his wishes to the world in his New Year’s address, conveying confidence and hope to the world. He said, we Chinese are keenly aware of what peace means. We will work closely with the international community for the common good of humanity, build a community with a shared future for mankind, and make the world a better place for all.
Building a community with a shared future for mankind is how China proposes to solve the questions of what kind of world to build and how to build it. I would like to take this opportunity to share my thoughts with you, and help enhance your understanding of this Chinese concept.
To cope with the challenges facing the world today, China calls for an equal and orderly multipolar world.
An equal and orderly multipolar world is one in which all countries, regardless of size, are treated as equals, hegemonism and power politics are rejected, and democracy is truly promoted in international relations. To keep the progress toward greater multipolarity generally stable and constructive, the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter must be observed by all, the universally recognized, basic norms governing international relations must be upheld by all, and true multilateralism must be practiced.
No country, however strong it may be, can do everything on its own. Only when all countries work together, only when we align individual interests with the interests of all, and only when we truly build a community with a shared future, can humanity tide through the crises confronting us and sail towards a better future. China and Canada share extensive common interests and broad space for cooperation in upholding multilateralism, promoting free trade and addressing climate change. More than a year ago, China, the presidency of COP15, and Canada joined hands for the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. This shows as long as China and Canada join hands, our two countries can make contributions to the progress of human civilization.
To achieve prosperity for all, China calls for a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization.
A universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization is one that meets the common needs of all countries, especially developing countries, and properly addresses the development imbalances between and within countries resulting from the global allocation of resources. It is important to resolutely oppose the attempt to roll back globalization and abuse the concept of security, oppose all forms of unilateralism and protectionism, firmly promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, overcome the structural problems hindering the healthy development of the world economy, and make economic globalization more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial to all.
Over the years, both China and Canada have benefited from the prosperity brought by economic globalization. Bilateral trade in goods has grown from only a few hundred million Canadian dollars in the 1970s to nearly 130 billion Canadian dollars by 2022. Bilateral economic and trade cooperation has gone beyond traditional sectors like energy, mining, agriculture and forestry to new areas such as insurance and environmental protection. Canadian products such as timber and coal from western Canada, canola seeds and wheat from the prairie provinces, marine products from the maritime provinces, and consumer goods from the central regions are increasingly showing up in Chinese factories’ production lines, as well as in Chinese consumers’ shopping carts. As the largest global growth engine, China will provide new opportunities for countries around the world, including Canada, through Chinese modernization.
As the New Year begins, everything takes on a new look. For the road ahead, it is hoped that Canada will work in the same direction with China, uphold the principle of mutual respect, seeking common ground while shelving differences, and win-win cooperation, to bring our bilateral relationship back on track at an early date. We are ready to, together with the Canadian side, resolutely champion world multipolarity and economic globalization, and contribute to a bright future of peace, security, prosperity and progress for our world.
