China Central Television: How will China’s diplomacy adapt to the new normal of COVID-19 response? Is there anything in particular to watch for on this year’s diplomatic agenda?
Wang Yi: COVID-19 may have pressed the “pause” button on the interactions between countries, but China’s diplomacy has not paused for a moment. China has engaged in what we call “cloud diplomacy” in the form of phone calls, correspondence and video conferences.
President Xi Jinping has personally led China’s diplomatic efforts throughout this period. He has engaged with many world leaders and advanced international cooperation as a global statesman. To date, he has had phone calls or meetings with nearly 50 foreign leaders and heads of international organizations. He has attended the Extraordinary G20 Leaders’ Summit and spoken at the opening of the World Health Assembly. In all his diplomatic engagements, he underscored China’s unequivocal commitment to global solidarity and cooperation against COVID-19. Premier Li Keqiang has also spoken with foreign leaders by phone and attended a Special ASEAN Plus Three Summit on COVID-19. I myself have had over 100 phone calls with foreign counterparts. China has held special foreign ministers’ meetings with ASEAN members, Lancang-Mekong countries, Japan and the ROK, BRICS countries, and SCO members.
This year is of special significance in China’s national rejuvenation. China’s diplomatic service will adapt to the new normal of COVID-19 response, focus on five priorities and create new highlights:
First, we will make every effort to facilitate domestic development. Taking into account both domestic and international dynamics, we will leverage all the diplomatic resources at our disposal to support key national development strategies. We will work to keep the global production and supply chains stable after COVID-19, promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, and offset downward risks to the world economy.
Second, we will firmly defend national interests. We will show more resolve and take more effective steps to safeguard China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, and forestall and foil all external attempts to interfere in China’s internal affairs.
Third, we will build stronger partnerships. We will seek steady progress in our relations with other major countries, expand the convergence of interests with our neighbors, and reinforce solidarity and friendship with fellow developing countries.
Fourth, we will firmly uphold multilateralism. We will focus on enhancing global public health governance, support WHO in playing its due role in the global COVID-19 response, and garner efforts to build a global community of health for all.
Fifth, we will actively expand international cooperation. We propose to set up joint COVID-19 response mechanisms with more countries for more effective cooperation against the virus. We will also push forward health cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative to strengthen global preparedness against epidemics.
China National Radio: How can China’s diplomatic service contribute to winning the battle against extreme poverty and achieving moderate prosperity?
Wang Yi: Achieving moderate prosperity in all respects is a centenary goal of China, and eliminating extreme poverty has been our nation’s dream for thousands of years. The entire Chinese nation are working doubly hard to accomplish these two historic goals this year. All members of China’s diplomatic service are duty bound to contribute their share.
While the completion of these two tasks mainly depends on China’s own efforts, securing an enabling international environment is also important. Right now, the COVID-19 pandemic presents the greatest external complication and challenge to China’s development. To better facilitate domestic development, we in the diplomatic service must adapt to the new realities and think out of the box to solve new problems. We will strive to minimize the pandemic’s impact on our people’s life and health and on China’s economic and social development. We will look out for new opportunities of development from fighting COVID-19 with the rest of the world. While staying vigilant against imported cases, we will phase in more enabling conditions for resuming normal state-to-state interactions. We will take strong steps to advance international cooperation for shared benefit, and make new contributions to the development and prosperity of China and the rest of the world.
The Foreign Ministry has taken on specific responsibilities in the national drive for moderate prosperity and poverty eradication. For the past 28 years, the Ministry has been paired with Jinping and Malipo, two poverty-stricken counties in Yunnan Province designated by the central government, to help them escape poverty. I’m happy to report that the two counties have recently got rid of extreme poverty. My Ministry will see the job through and help the two counties consolidate their gains. At the same time, we will continue to share China’s success story of eliminating poverty through development, and promote international exchange and cooperation on poverty reduction. We will work to gain more understanding and support for China’s battle against poverty, and contribute to the global attainment of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
China News Service: Can you share more about how the Chinese Foreign Ministry and its missions abroad have helped overseas Chinese nationals who have encountered difficulties in their host countries?
Wang Yi: Since the onset of COVID-19, the well-being of overseas Chinese nationals has been close to the heart of the motherland. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed on more than one occasion the need to ensure their safety and health. Acting on this, the Foreign Ministry and Chinese diplomatic and consular missions all over the world swiftly mobilized resources and conveyed to every Chinese national abroad the care and solicitude of the CPC and the government. An unprecedented operation was launched to provide consular protection to Chinese nationals wherever they are in the world.
We reached out to fellow Chinese all around the world to help address their difficulties. We invited leading Chinese experts to share COVID-19 prevention tips with overseas students via video link. We coordinated with other agencies to send over 20 medical expert teams to as many countries to provide guidance for Chinese citizens. We helped Chinese nationals get in touch with local health providers and with experts in China, the latter via telemedicine platforms. We paid particular attention to the well-being of Chinese students and, by one way or another, managed to deliver over one million health kits, which are symbols of the motherland’s care, to those who need them.
The Foreign Ministry’s consular hotline 12308, which runs 24/7, handled over 200,000 calls in March and April alone, which means more than 3,600 calls per day. We take every call seriously and make sure that the caller’s concerns are noted down and addressed in each case. In this way, we keep the channels open for every overseas Chinese in need of help.
Shortly after COVID-19 started, we chartered planes to bring back citizens stranded abroad. As infections spiked in some countries, we arranged ad hoc flights for Chinese nationals who had an urgent need to return.
Serving the people is the abiding mission of Chinese diplomats. The past few months have been an extraordinary time for us. Our entire diplomatic service, from heads of mission to everyone else in our embassies and consulates, have acted with a strong sense of responsibility and dedication to their job. They have braved the risk of infection and readily made sacrifices. Finally, a word to our fellow Chinese abroad: Whatever happens, the motherland is always behind you, and Chinese diplomatic and consular missions will always be there for you.
Hubei TV: The Foreign Ministry has done a lot to clear Wuhan’s name and help the city beat the virus. What will the Foreign Ministry do to assist Hubei’s development and opening-up?
Wang Yi: Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, a decisive victory has been won in the battle to safeguard Hubei Province and its capital Wuhan. In this extraordinary battle, the people of Hubei and Wuhan have made enormous efforts and sacrifices as well as a significant contribution to COVID-19 response in and beyond China. On behalf of the nation’s diplomatic service, I wish to pay high tribute to the heroic people of Hubei and Wuhan!
We in the diplomatic service have contributed our share to the battle of safeguarding Hubei and Wuhan. Under the direction of the Central Guidance Group, the Foreign Ministry sent a team to Wuhan to help mobilize anti-epidemic resources and coordinate the distribution of international donations. Over 100 members of the diplomatic service who were visiting family in Hubei joined the local response. Upon learning that many overseas Chinese citizens from Hubei concerned about their families in the province were unable to return because of flight cancellations, the Foreign Ministry instructed Chinese missions abroad to reach out to them and arrange charter flights to bring them home.
By now, the economic and social order in Hubei has largely returned to normal. We at the Foreign Ministry will do whatever we can to boost its development in the post-COVID-19 era. We are exploring a fast track for essential international personnel to return to work in foreign-related enterprises in Hubei and Wuhan. Depending on how the pandemic evolves, we will create opportunities for Hubei to revive exchanges and cooperation with the outside world. When the time is right, the Foreign Ministry would love to hold a special promotion event to showcase the new Hubei and Wuhan that have emerged stronger from COVID-19. This will be a major opportunity for the world to know more about Hubei and give more support to Wuhan.
Cable News Network: We’ve seen an increasingly heated “war of words” between China and the US. Is “wolf warrior” diplomacy the new norm of China’s diplomacy?
Wang Yi: I respect your right to ask the question, but I’m afraid you’re not framing the question in the right way. One has to have a sense of right and wrong. Without it, a person cannot be trusted, and a country cannot hold its own in the family of nations.
There may be all kinds of interpretations and commentary about Chinese diplomacy. As China’s Foreign Minister, let me state for the record that China always follows an independent foreign policy of peace. No matter how the international situation may change, we will always stand for peace, development and mutually beneficial cooperation, stay committed to upholding world peace and promoting common development, and seek friendship and cooperation with all countries. We see it as our mission to make new and greater contributions to humanity.
China’s foreign policy tradition is rooted in its 5,000-year civilization. Since ancient times, China has been widely recognized as a nation of moderation. We Chinese value peace, harmony, sincerity and integrity. We never pick a fight or bully others, but we have principles and guts. We will push back against any deliberate insult to resolutely defend our national honor and dignity. And we will refute all groundless slander with facts to resolutely uphold fairness, justice and human conscience.
The future of China’s diplomacy is premised on our commitment to working with all countries to build a community with a shared future for mankind. Since we live in the same global village, countries should get along peacefully and treat each other as equals. Decisions on global affairs should be made through consultation, not because one or two countries say so. That’s why China advocates for a multi-polar world and greater democracy in international relations. This position is fully aligned with the direction of human progress and the shared aspiration of most countries. No matter what stage of development it reaches, China will never seek hegemony. We will always stand with the common interests of all countries. And we will always stand on the right side of history. Those who go out of their way to label China as a hegemon are precisely the ones who refuse to let go of their hegemonic status.
The world is undergoing changes of a kind unseen in a century and full of instability and turbulence. Confronted by a growing set of global challenges, we hope all countries will realize that humanity is a community with a shared future. We must render each other more support and cooperation, and there should be less finger-pointing and confrontation. We call on all nations to come together and build a better world for all.
Kazinform: What steps will China take to revive cooperation with Belt and Road partner countries from the impact of COVID-19?
Wang Yi: COVID-19 has affected Belt and Road cooperation to some extent, but the impact is temporary and limited. From an overall and long-term perspective, COVID-19 will only strengthen and re-energize Belt and Road cooperation and open up new possibilities.
Belt and Road cooperation is built on its real benefits to the people in partner countries. Over the past seven years, China has signed Belt and Road cooperation documents with 138 countries. More than 2,000 projects have been launched and tens of thousands of jobs created in the partner countries. Many of the infrastructure and livelihood projects have played a vital role in COVID-19 response. For example, energy projects along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor have kept running and provided one third of the country’s electricity. While most of the air freight services have been suspended or canceled, the China-Europe Railway Express has seen its services and cargo volume increase by 24 percent and 27 percent between January and April. Delivering nearly 8,000 tons of anti-epidemic supplies in total, the railway has truly served as a lifeline for freight transportation between Asia and Europe.
Belt and Road cooperation is driven by a strong and shared commitment to common development. Over the past seven years, China’s trade in goods with Belt and Road partner countries has exceeded 7.8 trillion dollars, and direct Chinese investment in the partner countries has topped 110 billion dollars. Despite the impact of COVID-19, Chinese investment in Belt and Road partner countries increased by 11.7 percent in the first quarter and trade with them was up by 3.2 percent. Steady progress is being made in the China-Laos railway, the Budapest-Belgrade railway, the dual-fuel power plant in Cambodia, and the CBD project in the new administrative capital of Egypt. Construction has resumed for a number of projects suspended due to COVID-19. All this will generate strong impetus for the host countries’ efforts to beat the virus and revitalize the economy.
The future of the Belt and Road Initiative lies in expanding the cooperation to new areas. Emerging from COVID-19, countries will have a stronger need to grow the economy and improve lives as well as a surging demand for public health cooperation. China will work with the partner countries to advance health cooperation along the Belt and Road and convene a high-level video conference to better protect people’s health and safety in the partner countries. China will also advance the Digital Belt and Road to create new engines of growth for the partner countries and new impetus for global recovery.
In sum, China is as confident and determined as ever to promote Belt and Road cooperation. We will continue to follow the principle of consultation and cooperation for shared benefits, and support open, green and clean development. By aiming for high-standard, people-centered and sustainable progress, we will make the Belt and Road a model of development, cooperation and health for all involved.
