China continues to work with 'WEF' to promote globalization and fair international trade

Editor's note: Farhad Chowdhury, a special commentator for CGTN, is a security and strategic affairs researcher and columnist. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2024 is being held from January 15 to 19 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, with the theme "Rebuilding Trust." The forum brings together around 2,800 global leaders, including over 60 heads of state and government, 300 public personalities, and 1,600 corporate executives. The WEF's mission is to improve the world by connecting leaders in business, politics, academia and more. The WEF 2024 focuses on four main themes: achieving security and cooperation in a fractured world, creating jobs and growth, leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) for societal benefit, and developing a long-term strategy for climate, nature, and energy.

To advocate Chinese solutions to the current global economic difficulties and to support the WEF's goal, Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended the WEF Annual Meeting 2024 and delivered his important speech on January 16.  China's attendance at the summit demonstrates that it wants to play an active role in improving international economic cooperation and tackling global crises.

World leaders, economists, businesses, and individuals were captivated by Chinese Premier Li Qiang's significant address, which he made in support of the theme and goals of the WEF. Li's emphasis on global cooperation through dispelling fragmentation, and rebuilding trust, only by fully respecting the objective laws of the international industrial division of labor, ensuring the stability of the global supply chains, increasing scientific and technological achievement, practicing multilateralism, promoting economic growth, and strengthening cooperation with each other is crucial to promoting globalization and contrasts with protectionism professed by certain nations.

In addition, he emphasized China's commitment to opening up, its economic recovery, and its stability, noting that 5.2 percent growth in the nation's GDP is anticipated in 2023. China is the second-largest economy in the world and one of the major participants in the global supply chain. Such promises from the Chinese Premier are very encouraging for foreign companies and breathes life into rules-based, free-market international commerce.  For a worldwide audience concerned about the condition of the global economy and economic globalization, China's stance on globalization is important. For the world economy to flourish, China's dedication to openness and scientific and technical progress is essential. To serve the interests of all stakeholders, supply networks and global chains must remain stable. 

China's dedication to multilateralism guarantees that its contributions advance humankind as a whole and stop the exploitation of the growth of other nations. In his five proposals, he called for coordination of macroeconomic policy, international industrial specialization, collaboration in innovation, cooperation in green development, and cooperation between the North and South. The constructive Chinese approach to maintaining global prosperity and the spirit of globalization during economic downturns and geopolitical tensions are critical to the Chinese premier's five proposals, which emphasizes global trust and collaboration in addition to China's economic stability. For audiences across the world, China's solutions to further economic globalization will be noteworthy.

To move the world forward, political-economic cooperation, collaboration in innovation and international industrial specialization as just shown by Li in his speech are necessary to address risks such as trade protectionism, environmental degradation, economic crises, and disruptions of the global supply chain. WEF President Borge Brende also emphasized the importance of rebuilding trust to collaborate on transboundary challenges such as climate change, future pandemics, cybercrime, and cyberattacks.

The "Rebuilding Trust" theme emphasizes responsibility, openness, bridging gaps between developing and developed countries, and consistency to rebuild trust in the face of global issues like climate change, geopolitical conflicts, and AI developments. The stability of the global supply chain and economic recovery depends on emerging and developed nations reestablishing confidence. Constant communication, participation, solidarity, openness, and peace are essential for a fair and secure global trading system.

China and the World Economic Forum (WEF) are promoting mutual understanding, globalization, and free and fair international trade through global economic cooperation. China is committed to high-level opening-up, economic reforms, and peaceful development, while the WEF recognizes its contributions to the world economy and fight against poverty. WEF President Borge Brende thinks China will continue to lead global economic expansion, shifting its focus from investments to digital commerce and electric automobiles. China aligns with the liberal philosophy of the WEF by building trust, promoting global supply chain stability, and promoting a free, fair, and liberal trade policy. China's influence in addressing international trade concerns may help establish international free and fair trade based on rules. China's engagement in long-term global concerns, such as peaceful solutions to wars and conflicts, climate catastrophes, biodiversity preservation, energy transformation, AI governance, cyber-security, global trade barriers, climate change, and the fourth industrial revolution, may be essential in developing policy responses to global problems. 

The WEF summit must act as a catalyst for easy international trade and the removal of trade barriers, especially when disruptions in the global supply chain, pandemic recovery, and trade policies threaten free and fair trade. China will maintain its stance on promoting globalization and the World Economic Forum's free trade liberal policy.

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