Speech at the Fifth China-U.S. Civil Society Peace Forum

Li Wuwei

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Speech at the Fifth China-U.S. Civil Society Peace Forum

Distinguished guests,Ladies and gentlemen,Dear friends,

It gives me great pleasure to join our American friends on this beautiful day in Yinchuan, the ancient capital of Xixia, to attend Fifth China-U.S. Civil Society Peace Forum jointly held by the Chinese People’s Association for Peace and Disarment (CPAPD), the Ningxia People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). On behalf of CPAPD, I would like to offer the warmest welcome on the convening of the forum and the most sincre welcome to Chinese participants and American friends coming from afar!

Dear friends,

The world today is undergoing profound and complex changes. China and the United States shoulder shared responsibility in safeguarding world peace and stability and in promoting development and progress of mankind. When President Xi Jinping and President Obama met at the Annenberg Retreat in June 2013, they put forward the proposition of building a new type of major-country relations featuring non-confrontation, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation, pointing the right direction for development of bilaeral relations. In March 2014, the two leaders met again in the Netherlands and reiterated their commitment to this new type of relations. The building of a new type of major-country relations between China and the United States is unprecedented and inspring. There is no experience to copy. Nor can it be achieved overnight. There is a long way to go. I think for China and the United States to build a new type of major-country relations, we should observe three points.

First of all, we must have confidence. This new type of relations conforms with not only our common interests but also the expectations of the international community. For our two countries, it is not a question of choice, but the only right option. We must make joint efforts to make this new type of relations a strategic direction to which the two governemtns will adhere to for a long time to come and a widely accepted consensus of the two peoples.

Secondly, we must have sincerity.The differences between our two sides will not disappear all of a sudden just because we want to build a new type of relations. The key is that we should respect the social systems and development models of our respective choosing, respect each other’s sovereinty, security and development interests, refrain from imposing one’s own will on the other and constructively manage and control differences through dialogue and consultation.

Thirdly, we must take action. A new type of relations is by no means a slogan. Rather, it must be promoted through concrete cooperation and real action. It must be reflected in every respect of bilateral relations and bring tangible benefits to the peoples of the two countries and the world at large. This is the fundamental driving force for the new type of relations between us.

Specifically speaking, I think work in the following areas is very important :

First of all, we must continuously increase strategic mutual trust so that the new type of major-country relations between China and the United States will be based on a more solid foundation. The two sides should correctly grasp the strategic intension, core interests and key concerns of each other and try to avoid misjudgment. China is committed to the road of peaceful development and is always a positive energy in promoting world peace and development. The United States should correctly understand China’s stragegic intension and reflect through real action the position its leaders have expressed on many occasions, i.e., the United States welcomes a successful, strong, stable and prosperous China. Only by reassuring each other and discarding suspicions can China-U.S. realtions march along steady and fast path.

Secondly, we must actively expand areas of practical cooperation so that the new type of major-country relations between China and the United States will be built on stronger bonds of interests. The 3rd Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee has laid out plans for comphrehensively deepening reforms, which is followed by the unveiling of a series of new reform measures. We have also noticed that President Obama has put forward a strategy for long-term economic development and for cultivating new growth points for the economy. China and the United States should take this as an opportunity to jointly “upgrade ”our economic and trade cooperation, and to push cooperation in energy, environmental protecion, urbanization, and bio tehcnology to wider scopes and higher levels.

Thirdly, we must provide new thinkingfor solving international hot-spot issues and global problems so that the new type of major-country relations between China and the United States will be built on closer common responsibilities. The United States is the largest developed country while China the largest developing country in the world. We have increasing intertwined interests and growing common responsibilites in safeguarding regional and international peace and stability and promoting sustainable development of mankind. For instance, the two sides should continue to unswervingly promote the process of denuclearization of the Korean Penninsula to safeguard peace and stability on the Peninnsula and in Northeast Asia, and to steadily press ahead with the negotiation process on the Iranian nuclear issue to sageguard the international non-proliferation regime.

Fourthly, we must shape a new pattern of sound interatcions in the Asia Pacific region so that the new type of major-country relations between China and the United States will start from Asia-Pacific. Asia-Pacific is one of the fastest growing, most promising and most dynamic regions in the world. It is also a region where China and the United States have the most intertwined interests and most frequent interactions. We have developed our relaitons with neighboring countries based on the neighboring policy of “building friendship and partnership with our neighbors” and the concept of “affinity, sincerity, benefit and inclusiveness”. As a matter of fact, China and the United States have much more common interests than differences in Asia Pacific. To build a new type of relations, we should, and are best positioned to start from the region. We should earnestly respect each other’s core interests and major concerns in the region, conduct coordination to control hot-spot issues and jointly deal with non-traditional secruity challenges.

Fifthly, we should unswervingly nurture friendship between the two peoples so that the new type of major-country relations between China and the United States willl be built on a stronger foundation of public support. Relations between countires lie in affinity between the people, which dirives from communication of the hearts. Without whole-hearted exchanges between the people, cooperation will not last. To build a new type of major country relations, China and the United States should conduct cooperation and exchanges on multiple levels and in various areas and plant the seeds of our frindship in rich soil so that the force and voice supporting China-U.S. cooperation will always remain the mainstream of public opinion and the social foundation for our relations will be continuously developed and strengthened.

Dear friends,

China is still a developing country with arduous tasks of domestic reform, development and stability. Based on the blueprint for reform, opening-up and development laid out at the 3rd Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, we will stive to build a moderately prosperous society benefitng the 1.3 billion Chinese people and realize the Chinese dream of the great renewal of the nation. The process of reform and opening-up in China is also a process of expanded China-U.S. exchanges and cooperation and a process of realizing win-win reciprocity and delivering benefit for the people. Good coopreation between our two countries will serve as a ballast stone for world stablity and propeller for world peace. As long as we join our hands, we can well avoid the “Thucydides’s trap” where rising powers would necessarily challenge the established power and blaze a new path of sound interactions and effective cooperation.

It is highly relevant that the Fifth China-U.S. Civil Society Peace Forum is held today in Ningxia bythe CPAPCD, the Ningxia People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the AFSC. Located in the Western part of China, Ningxia is witnessing rapid reform and opening up, sustained economic prosperity and social harmony. People of various ethnic groups in China are using their wisdom and hard work to realize their beautiful dreams. In Ningxia, which enjoys the advantages of heaven, earth and the people, I hope experts from China and America will speak you mind while making friends so as to contribute insight to safeguarding peace in Asia-Pacific and creating a beautiful future of lasting peace and shared prosperity.

I wish the Fifth China-U.S. Civil Society Peace Forum a complete success.

Thank you.

Foreign participants visiting a sand-fixing project.