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Zhou Xin

Shi Jiangtao

This week's Belt and Road Forum in Beijing is the diplomatic highlight of the year for China, with 37 world leaders in attendance, along with 5,000 other representatives from 150 countries.
But President Xi Jinping's multibillion-dollar “Belt and Road Initiative”, first unveiled six years ago with the aim of linking China with Asia and Europe through ports, roads, airports, pipelines and other infrastructure projects, has also prompted concerns about what critics have called a lack of transparency related to project development, land requisition, debt pricing and other contractual issues.
See how Xi deals with those issues and others in his speech to the forum on Friday morning here.
 


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Belt and Road: 2019 Forum

China will not devalue yuan, Xi tells world leaders at Belt and Road Forum

Chinese President Xi Jinping attends the opening ceremony for the second Belt and Road Forum in Beijing. Photo: Reuters

News

China

Diplomacy

Beijing is seeking to resolve growing concerns about its global infrastructure push
Forum communique will be considered by 37 world leaders on Saturday


Beijing is seeking to resolve growing concerns about its global infrastructure push as 37 world leaders gather at the second Belt and Road Forum in Beijing.


Belt and Road Initiative

Belt and Road: Background

Belt and Road: Comment

Live

You know there's something important happening in the Chinese capital's largest inner-city district when its public security volunteers, the famous Chaoyang qunzhong (masses) make an appearance. These vigilant volunteers took up positions outside the National Conference Centre a full three hours before Xi was due to begin his keynote speech at the venue. They weren't there on Thursday, the first day of the forum.


And now their watch begins

The "Belt and Road Initiative" has long been accused by the West of serving China’s political agenda to replace the US-led world order.
Critics say that the scheme helps to legitimise China’s geopolitical ambitions, with the heavy borrowing for infrastructure spending creating “debt traps” for participating nations.
The project will also serve Beijing’s ambition to shift the world’s political and economic centre of gravity to the East, ultimately forming a Eurasian economic bloc excluding the US, critics say.


What the Western critics say

Craft makers at the “Intangible Cultural Heritage Interactive Area” [sic] at the Belt and Road Forum murmur to one another “has Xi’s speech started yet?” and continue their handiwork pic.twitter.com/UIhxCL43no
— Keegan Elmer (@inthenewera) April 26, 2019


“ Has Xi’s speech started yet?”

Xi starts his speech, saying that major decisions made at the first Belt and Road Forum two years ago were implemented.


Xi Jinping takes the stage

Xi says the Belt and Road Initiative has opened a new horizon for China's opening up. 


Xi Jinping speech

"The Belt and Road is aimed at helping to deal with different challenges we face. With the hard effort of all parties, many projects under Belt and Road have produced fruit. More than 150 nations and international organisations have signed documents on Belt and Road."


What Xi is saying

Xi says China will not try to form a secretive "small club" and will fight corruption with "zero tolerance".


Xi says China will try to ensure "financial and fiscal sustainability" in its belt and road plan. He didn't elaborate on this point. 


Xi briefly reviewed the last summit on the "Belt and Road Initiative" two years ago at the beginning of his speech, which started at 9:45am.
He said the cooperation pattern of "six corridors and six channels serving multiple countries and ports" is basically formed.


Xi reviews Belt and Road progress 

Xi says China plans to sell Silk Road bonds, among other financing channels, to raise funds for Belt and Road Initiative.


Xi on infrastructure

“The speeches in the CEO conference were all just very institutional ... the Chinese style, with not much real content,” a Portuguese businessman said, showing frustration over how badly the Belt and Road forum is organised. #BeltandRoad  https://t.co/UQJzMSCqTq
— Teddy Ng (@teddyng) April 25, 2019


How delegates reacted to the first day of the forum

Xi says that as the host country, China will uphold the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, maintain close communication and coordination with all parties to work together with openness, inclusiveness and transparency.
He stressed green growth and sustainable financing amid mounting scepticism over his signature foreign policy and trade strategy.


Extensive consultation promised 

Xi says China will fight against trade protectionism and aim to sign more bilateral free trade deals. 


On trade

China welcomes financing and investments from other partners and cooperation on third party markets. Xi says the "Belt and Road Initiative" is a commitment to multilateralism and an open global economy.
He says the second import expo will be held in Shanghai in November.


Commitment to multilateralism

Flows of commodity, capital, technology, and person are vital for economic growth, Xi says. "The great rivers and oceans are deep because they are open to all trickles," the Chinese leader said. "If inflows of streams and rivers are cut off, even a big sea will dry sooner or later."
 


Xi also unveiled a series of cooperation mechanisms and projects on financing, technology transfer, poverty reduction, green growth and other areas.
A data platform on green growth will be launched.


Cooperation mechanisms unveiled

Belt and Road Initiative explained

 Xi promised that China will open its domestic market further to foreign investors and allow foreign investors to take majority equity stakes in more sectors.


On opening

Xi says China will prohibit forced technology transfers and will enhance the protection of intellectual property rights.


On IPR

Amid suspicions of Chinese geostrategic intentions, Xi says Beijing will also promote cooperation on fighting corruption, and on education, think tanks and people-to-people exchanges.


People-to-people exchanges

Xi says China will cut tariffs further and lower non-tariff barriers to import more products. Xi says China is willing to buy more products from overseas and China is not deliberately chasing a trade surplus.


On imports

Belt and Road Forum organizers said they were told to COVER UP Huawei logos from the 5G device in the press center with these stickers, but they let me peak at the bottom when asked pic.twitter.com/I3flKfxyfo
— Keegan Elmer (@inthenewera) April 26, 2019


Huawei 5G devices

Xi says China will not devalue the yuan!


On yuan

The key points in Xi speech at Belt and Road Forum include a slew of promises of a stable yuan, further market opening, intellectual property rights protection, and better business environment. Xi didn't mention the US or the trade war. 


How to deal with the "Belt and Road Initiative" has increasingly become a contentious issue for countries around the world, which are more or less caught in the unfolding geopolitical rivalry between Beijing and Washington. In that sense, the scheme is a lot more about trade and infrastructure investments and for the US, its allies and other countries suspicious of Xi’s global ambition, it is about how to deal with a rising China. Xi is apparently aware of the mounting concerns around the globe and that helps explain why he talked extensively about China's commitments to reform and opening up, trying to reassure the world that China's rise will be peaceful.


Trying to reassure the world

Xi said China will not engage in  any "beggar-thy-neighbor" currency devaluation. "China will continuously improve the yuan exchange rate formation mechanism...and keep the yuan exchange rate basically stable at a reasonable and balanced level," Xi said.


On yuan exchange rate 

Xi said China will build up "a rule-of-law government" and "a trustworthy government". Xi said China will set up "an implementation mechanism" at home to put binding international agreements into practices, China will further improve its laws and regulations and to tame the state's hand in terms of "administrative licensing and market regulation". 


On domestic law

Xi's 30-minute speech for the second Belt and Road Forum was shorter than the last one in 2017. Two years ago, his speech lasted for 45 minutes. Also in 2017, Xi pledged to add 100 billion yuan to the Silk Road Fund, and another 300 billion yuan in overseas yuan funding. But Xi did not make such pledges this year. He did, however, stress that China is committed to an open economy, and put more emphasis on people-to-people exchange, saying the "Belt and Road Initiative" is not only for China, but open to other nations' participation.
Keep returning to SCMP.com for more from the forum.


China will not devalue yuan, Xi tells world leaders at Belt and Road Forum

Beijing is seeking to resolve growing concerns about its global infrastructure push Forum communique will be considered by 37 world leaders on Saturday

Beijing is seeking to resolve growing concerns about its global infrastructure push

Forum communique will be considered by 37 world leaders on Saturday