Papua New Guinea
On Thursday, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Papua New Guinea (PNG), Soroi Eoe, in Guiyang.
Wang said that because the pandemic is still raging across the world, “we must never relax efforts to strengthen international anti-pandemic cooperation.” He assured that China is ready to share the experience with PNG “in combating the virus, offer the country with medical supplies, and strengthen exchanges in public health governance and medical technology, promoting the building of a global community of health for all.” He also announced China’s intentions to set up the China-Pacific Island Countries (PICs) emergency supplies reserve as a response measure for major public health contingencies and natural disasters.
Eoe, for his part, said that PNG firmly opposes Japan’s unilateral decision to discharge nuclear wastewater into the Pacific, and will jointly resist Japan’s irresponsible behaviour with China and other countries. He also expressed hope “to strengthen cooperation with China in fields such as infrastructure, communication, agriculture, and health, and align the Belt and Road Initiative with “Connecting Papua New Guinea” to bolster China-PNG ties.
On Wednesday evening, President Xi Jinping held meetings with diplomats from Azerbaijan, Dominican Republic, and Kazakhstan.
Azerbaijan
During the phone conversation with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Xi said that both sides should “ensure sound planning and progress of the Belt and Road cooperation.” He assured of China’s willingness to “import more high-quality and distinctive products” from Azerbaijan, support Chinese enterprises in investing and operating in Azerbaijan, and strengthen cooperation in the field of infrastructure. He also hoped for deeper cooperation in transport and logistics, advancing the construction of the Asia-Europe transport corridor, and improving regional connectivity.
Aliyev responded that “sound bilateral cooperation in fields such as politics, economy, and transport plays an active role for Azerbaijani economic growth.” He also welcomed Chinese enterprises to invest in its country.
Dominican Republic
In his conversation with Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader, Xi assured that with the start of the 14th Five-year Plan period, China will “open its door wider at a higher level,” in order to increase opportunities for bilateral cooperation. He also welcomed the Dominican Republic to export agricultural products to China, and expressed hope that the Dominican Republic “will play an active role in promoting cooperation between China and countries of Central America and the Caribbean as well as the overall cooperation between China and the Latin America.”
Abinader expressed gratitude for the medical supplies and vaccines provided by China and expressed hope to expand exchanges and cooperation in fields such as economy and trade.
Kazakhstan
During the phone conversation with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Xi said that both countries must promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and strengthen cooperation in fields such as “production capacity, trade, agriculture, and infrastructure, upgrade connectivity, and foster new cooperation growth points in green energy, AI, e-commerce, and digital finance, jointly building the Green Silk Road, the Health Silk Road, and the Digital Silk Road. He also assured that China will deepen cooperation in telemedicine and traditional medicine, and continue to provide assistance in the Central Asian country’s fight against the pandemic. Xi also said that the two sides should strengthen cooperation in law enforcement, security, and defence.
Tokayev assured that his administration will work with China “to consolidate and deepen bilateral ties, advance Belt and Road cooperation, strengthen cooperation in areas of economy and trade, infrastructure, and health, and increase communication and collaboration under the regional and international organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia.”
Hungary
On Monday, Wang Yi held talks and jointly met the press with Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó. During their meeting, the two foreign ministers agreed on the four goals of “delivering high-level development of China-Hungary comprehensive strategic partnership.” The goals guide both countries to:
- Deepen high-level strategic mutual trust, resolutely support each other in upholding national sovereignty, security and development interests.
- Push forward China’s new “Opening to the East” policy, focus on high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and improve quality and efficiency of China-CEEC cooperation.
- Overcoming the impact of COVID-19 and increasing exchanges of people in various fields and sectors such as education, culture, tourism, sports, youth, and media.
- Maintaining high-level international coordination, practising true multilateralism, defending the UN-centered international system, upholding international law and the basic norms governing international relations.
Ireland
On Sunday, Wang Yi held talks with Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence Simon Coveney in Guiyang. Wang said that China and the European Union (EU) are “comprehensive strategic partners, not rivals.” He continued that “bilateral cooperation far outweighs competition, and we agree much more than we disagree. We should not be afraid of differences, but enhance understanding, clarify matters, remove misgivings and distinguish right from wrong through equal dialogues. More importantly, the EU should understand China’s development stages in an objective and unbiased manner, assess China’s progress based on facts, and deal with its relations with China in a calm and evidence-based manner.” He added that Ireland is “a stable force within the EU,” and that China believes that Ireland “will continue to play a positive role in promoting the sound and stable development of the China-EU relations.”
Coveney said that Europe understands China’s “vital role in the world” and that the EU and China share broad interests in areas such as climate change, sustainable development, and global governance. Referring to the recently suspended Comprehensive Agreement on Investments (CAI), the diplomat assured that “it is still the shared aspiration of European countries to strengthen cooperation with China.”