Opening-up is a distinct feature of Chinese modernization. A resolution of the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China emphasized "improving the systems and mechanisms for high-standard opening up" and outlined strategic plans, providing the direction for China to expand its opening up to the outside world and promote the building of an open world economy.
Long Guoqiang, vice president of the Development Research Centre of the State Council, highlighted three key relationships that China needs to handle in order to advance high-standard opening-up during his appearance hosting "Stories of High-Quality Development", a People's Daily's video series.
In Long's view, first of all, China should properly handle the relationship between China and the world while advancing high-standard opening-up, fostering mutual benefit and win-win results.
China's development cannot be achieved isolated from the world and global prosperity cannot be realized without China. As the world faces accelerating changes unseen in a century and has entered a new phase of turbulence and transformation, the "question of the times" is "What kind of a world should we build?". It's a question that must be answered scientifically from the perspective of promoting lasting world peace and the sustainable development of mankind.
China actively participates in global economic governance, contributing to the improvement of the global governance system. It is actively engaged in the reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO), firmly supporting and improving the multilateral trading system centered around the WTO, and enhancing its effectiveness. China also plays an active role in making rules in emerging areas of international trade and economy, such as digitalization and green initiatives, while also incorporating Chinese wisdom into these endeavors, he said.
Secondly, China should effectively manage the relationship between different regions in promoting high-standard opening-up, constantly improving the opening-up paradigm.
Over the past 40 plus years, China's opening-up has progressed from coastal areas to areas along rivers, border areas and inland regions, forming a model of all-round, multi-level, and wide-ranging opening-up. Different regions have been able to play diverse roles in opening-up by making contributions in accordance with their unique local conditions.
Long believes that the eastern coastal areas must uphold their leading role in opening-up, while inland regions have the potential to emerge as new centers of opening-up. It is crucial to strengthen the opening-up of the central and western regions, as well as the northeast, and to facilitate coordination in the opening up of coastal and inland areas, as well as in eastward and westward opening-up. The pilot free trade zones and the free trade ports should fully leverage their role as opening-up platforms, align with high-level international economic and trade rules, and boldly carry out stress tests.
Third, it is imperative to properly handle the relationship between Chinese enterprises and foreign-invested ones, fostering equal competition and win-win cooperation between them. China presents foreign investors with a highly favorable environment, as it possesses a comprehensive industrial system, efficient infrastructure, a vast domestic market, a well-educated labor force, and the application of new technologies. As China opens its doors wider to the world, whether through infrastructure development or institutional optimization, its stability has become a linchpin in the constantly evolving global development landscape.
"In conclusion, advancing high-standard opening-up is an inherent requirement to promote high-quality development and achieve Chinese modernization. It is a path towards economic prosperity that must be taken. At the same time, Chinese modernization will bring new opportunities to the world, and is conducive to promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and achieving win-win cooperation between China and countries worldwide," Long said.
