MINSK, 1 June (BelTA) - China stands for strengthening of good-neighborly friendship among all countries, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Belarus Xie Xiaoyong said at the roundtable to discuss public diplomacy in cooperation between Belarus and the SCO in the House of Friendship on 31 May, BelTA has learned.
“The fog of the pandemic, unseen for a century, has not cleared away yet, but the international situation has become even more complicated, with the recovery of the world economy still being weak. The international political, economic and security order is fraught with crises. Instability, uncertainty and complexity have become more vivid. The more we face shocks, the more we must make full use of the role of public diplomacy as a stabilizer of interstate relations, an agent of culture, and widely mobilize the power of public diplomacy to provide an effective channel to eliminate the peace deficit,” the diplomat said.
He also emphasized: “China believes that the SCO, as an important force in maintaining regional and even international peace and stability, should persistently promote the ‘Shanghai spirit', stay committed to friendship, continuously strengthen the basis for the development of relations between countries, and help build a closer community of common destiny for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.”
The ambassador said China favors strengthening of good-neighborly friendship among all countries. “We need more events such as the SCO People's Diplomacy Forum and effectively use the platforms of people's interaction among all countries, including the China's SCO Committee on Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation, to strengthen unity and mutual trust among the peoples of all countries, take joint effective measures to counter new threats and challenges, and ensure regional peace and security,” he said.
The diplomat also emphasized the need to promote coordinated economic development. “It is important to promote deep integration of high-quality joint implementation of the Belt and Road initiative with the development strategies of various countries, adhere to the people-first approach, focus on combating the pandemic, poverty reduction, rural development, education, employment, so that all people can enjoy the benefits of development and cooperation,” he said.
The diplomat stressed the importance of cultural, artistic and academic exchanges between member states.
“In the history of exchanges between the peoples of the SCO region people's contacts have a long history and have made a considerable contribution to friendship and cooperation between countries. Let us continue making the full use of the people's diplomacy advantages, continuously enrich it and together promote the rapprochement of peoples in the SCO region. I am confident that our large SCO family will be a donor of global development and an advocate of international order for the benefit of the continuous development of mankind,” the head of the Chinese diplomatic mission said.
