The High-level Video Conference on Belt and Road International Cooperation was held on 18 June 2020, with the participation of 25 countries from the Belt and Road family. Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, and Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, attended the conference as special guests. Wang Yi, State Councilor and Foreign Minister of the People's Republic of China, chaired the event.

The conference is being held at a crucial time, as the whole world is going through a devastating pandemic and facing various challenges. This is especially the case for developing nations, which are more vulnerable. Public health is at stake in many countries, including the developed world. The US is the worst-hit country followed by the EU, Russia, Brazil and India. The global economy is suffering a massive impact, and some countries are already in a recession. China was the first country to become a victim of COVID-19, but due to hard work, the right policies and timely decisions, China has also become the first country to bring COVID-19 under control.

Against this backdrop, the conference served as an excellent forum for discussing the various issues and challenges facing the world, and for building consensus on how to address these issues and formulate a policy collectively.

Wang Yi said, "COVID-19, with its wide-ranging impact, is posing a challenge to humankind that has rarely been seen before. In order to defeat the virus, the world must come together in solidarity, partnership, and cooperation. For this reason, China initiated the Conference on Belt and Road International Cooperation and hopes that at such a crucial time, a message of unity and cooperation from Belt and Road partners will bolster confidence in promoting Belt and Road cooperation and in defeating the virus."

Despite the devastating impact of the pandemic globally, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has continued to grow in both depth and substance. It has evolved into the largest platform for international cooperation, and has played an increasingly vital role in promoting development and prosperity around the world. Following last year's successful Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, it has embarked on a new phase of high-quality cooperation. Over the past year and more, despite setbacks like COVID-19 and a sluggish global economy, Belt and Road cooperation has pressed ahead against all the odds, making new and encouraging progress.

The BRI family of partners has continued to expand. Over the past year, 29 new government-to-government (G2G) cooperation documents were signed, bringing the total number of such documents to 200. Trade and economic exchanges have also continued to expand. In 2019, trade in goods between China and BRI partners topped US$1.3 trillion, up by 6 percent. Chinese investment in Belt and Road countries increased by US$15 billion. In the first quarter of this year, trade between China and its BRI partners rose by 3.2 percent, and direct investment by China was up by 11.7 percent.

President Xi Jinping said in a written message to the conference that it was “a highly important meeting that allows Belt and Road cooperation partners to discuss a collective response to COVID-19, advance Belt and Road cooperation, and strengthen international solidarity and cooperation. Whether it is in taming the virus or in achieving economic recovery, we cannot succeed without solidarity, cooperation, and multilateralism. The right approach to tackling global crises and realizing long-term development is through greater connectivity, openness, and inclusiveness."

President Xi's remarks are pertinent to the rapidly changing geopolitical situation and emerging global challenges. China has the potential, capability, requisite experience, strong political will, and visionary leadership to lead the world in the post-pandemic era. This conference has provided the basic framework for future cooperation and developments.

Pakistan is the biggest supporter of BRI and its largest beneficiary. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the flagship project under BRI, and both countries are committed to making it a success story and exemplary model for the rest of the world to follow.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi participated in the conference. He underscored that besides causing deaths, the COVID-19 pandemic had shaken the world and led to economic slowdown, bankruptcies, financial fissures, job losses and disruption of global supply chains. Highlighting the dangers the pandemic posed to social and political stability, the foreign minister said it was time for the international community to "demonstrate unity, solidarity, and multilateral cooperation to fight this pandemic." 

The opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to People's Daily Online.

Zamir Ahmed Awan is a senior fellow with the Center for China and Globalization (CCG) and a sinologist at the National University of Sciences and Technology in Pakistan. E-mail: [email protected]