News Article

Let the "Golden Age" of Sino-British Relations Bloom
Qiu Yi
/ Categories: News

Let the "Golden Age" of Sino-British Relations Bloom

Ambassador Liu Xiaoming

During the 10th China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue, Chinese Ambassador to the UK Liu Xiaoming wrote in the European Timesthat the Sino-British economic and financial dialogue has become deeper and more solidified, furthering bilateral relations, a "ballast stone" and "booster" for pragmatic cooperation. It is in the common interest of the two countries and the two peoples to continue to maintain the China-UK economic and financial dialogue. The full text of the article is as follows:

In the middle of this month, Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua and the British Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond will co-chair the 10th China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue in London. As the Chinese Ambassador to the UK, I have participated in the dialogue many times over the past 9 years. For more than nine years, I am pleased to see that the Sino-British economic and financial dialogue has continued to deepen and become a "ballast stone" and "booster" to promote bilateral relations and deepen pragmatic cooperation.

I want to use three words to describe the characteristics of the dialogue mechanism: the first word is "deep". The two sides have been engaged in in-depth dialogues on major issues such as their respective macroeconomic policies and global economic governance, and have pointed out the direction for Sino-British economic and financial cooperation from strategic and policy levels, and effectively promoted the development of comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

The second word is "real." The two sides have reached nearly 500 policy achievements through dialogue so far, and have promoted a series of specific areas for cooperation such as in the fields of trade, investment, finance, energy, infrastructure, and the “Belt and Road”. This includes China’s participation in the construction of the Hinckley nuclear power project and the United Kingdom taking the lead among Western countries to enter the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

The third word is "all." All of the dialogues were held simultaneously to hold face-to-face exchanges between the leaders of the two parties and relevant government departments and financial institutions. They played an active role in building a comprehensive communication platform between the political and business circles of the two countries and promoted multi-channel docking negotiations between the two countries.

The world today is undergoing a major change and the international landscape is undergoing a period of great development, great change and great adjustment. Continuing to run the China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue was a strategic choice made by China and the UK in light of international trends and bilateral relations, and is in the common interests of the two countries and the two peoples. Under the current situation, the tenth China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue will convey three important messages:

Firstly, hand in hand, to speak with a loud voice on open cooperation. Both China and the UK are big countries with a rich tradition of openness and cooperation. China in the new era is further deepening reforms, expanding its openness, and embracing the world with a more confident and open attitude. The UK is working hard to create a “global UK” and reshaping the pattern of foreign cooperation. At present, protectionism and unilateralism are rampant, and topics such as the "clash of civilizations" and "the theory of civilized superiority" are on people’s minds. The dialogue will continue to adhere to the principles of equality, openness, tolerance, mutual benefit and win-win. We will discuss the challenges of the two countries in coping with the global economic challenges and achieving the common development of the two countries, demonstrating China's firm determination to further expand its openness, expressing China-UK freedom of advocacy. To further trade and multilateralism, and the common will to support the construction of an open world economy, release a strong signal of mutual respect, enhance mutual learning and mutual cooperation, and encourage the friendly cooperation between China and Britain.

Second is to face the future and help China-UK relations start over again. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the UK. Sino-British relations have gone through an extraordinary journey and through several storms. At present, the United Kingdom is in a crucial period of the Brexit process and political development. The Chinese and British governments held the tenth economic and financial dialogue as scheduled, fully demonstrating that both sides view and promote bilateral relations with a strategic and long-term perspective in mind. Standing at this new historical juncture, China and Britain will take advantage of the situation and push China-UK relations forward along the right track, injecting new impetus into the "golden age" of bilateral relations.

Third is mutual benefit and win-win results, creating new results in pragmatic cooperation. As China's economy continues to transform and upgrade, and the UK continues to expand its global economic and trade partnership, the potential for Sino-British cooperation is constantly being released. The China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue will continue to leverage the complementary advantages of the two countries, actively integrate the development strategies of the two sides, deepen cooperation in the fields of finance, trade, investment, energy and innovation, promote cooperation around the “Belt and Road” and third-party markets, and strengthen international economic affairs. This is all with the aim of achieving win-win cooperation between China and the UK. The dialogue will also provide an important platform for China and the UK to explore how to better expand two-way openness and create a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory business environment for companies. The results of this dialogue are expected to bring more opportunities and benefits to the two peoples, including the Chinese in the UK.

"The tides are wide on both sides, and the wind is hanging." Contacting people from all walks of life in China and the UK, I deeply feel that everyone is full of confidence in the future of China-UK relations and are full of expectations for a new round of China-UK economic and financial dialogue. This dialogue will definitely open up a new space for Sino-British economic and financial cooperation and add new brilliance to the "golden age" of bilateral relations!

(Editor: Qiu Yi)

Qiu YiDarcy Littler

Other posts by Qiu Yi
Contact author
blog comments powered by Disqus

Contact author

x

Latest