Xi Jinping Emphasizes Openness at China Import Expo, Targets US: "Cooperation Needed"

"Global Economy Lacks Recovery Momentum"
"Emphasizing the Need for Unity and Cooperation Among All Nations"

Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized openness and cooperation through the China International Import Expo (CIIE) held in Shanghai. He particularly mentioned that the global economy currently lacks the momentum needed for recovery and stressed the necessity of unity. This was essentially a call to ease sanctions and supply chain regulations targeting China by the United States.

In a letter of congratulation at the opening of the 6th CIIE in Shanghai on the 5th, President Xi stated, "The world economy lacks the momentum for recovery, and unity and cooperation among all countries are necessary," adding, "China will provide important opportunities for global development."

[Image source= Xinhua News Agency]

Li Chang, Premier of the State Council of China, explained in his keynote speech related to President Xi’s congratulatory message that it "emphasized China’s firm determination to further expand market openness." Premier Li further stressed, "Over the next five years, the cumulative value of China’s imports of goods and services is expected to reach 17 trillion dollars (approximately 2,230 trillion won)," and "China will continue to expand opportunities for market access."

The International Import Expo is an event promoted by the Chinese government since 2018 to enhance openness and expand imports. It runs for six days until the 10th, and this year’s event was attended by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, among others. Additionally, over 3,400 companies from more than 130 countries participated, with South Korea represented by 212 companies organized by the Korea International Trade Association and the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation.

Rebecca Greenspan, representative of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), who attended the event, said in her speech, "This expo symbolizes China’s willingness to balance trade relations with other parts of the world, especially developing countries and small and medium-sized enterprises," adding, "It is a marketplace of ideas and cultural fusion, and a starting point for a new paradigm of global action and international cooperation." Jakob Stausholm, CEO of Australian mining giant Rio Tinto, stated in a press release, "China will continue to play a pivotal role in promoting global economic growth," and "It clearly demonstrated its commitment to fostering global development."

The Chinese state-run media Global Times (GT) emphasized, "The International Import Expo shows China’s open attitude toward global investment and resource inflow and its willingness to share growth achievements through development, rather than engaging in trade protectionism or a ‘small yard, high fence’ strategy."

Within China, there are expectations that this expo will achieve results surpassing those of the China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair), which was held over three weeks starting from the 15th of last month. The Canton Fair recorded export transactions totaling 22.3 billion dollars.

Meanwhile, President Xi is highly likely to hold a summit meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden on the occasion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit scheduled to take place in San Francisco from the 11th to the 17th. Both countries have been conducting high-level consultations recently to coordinate schedules and discuss the agenda.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.