Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning’s Regular Press Conference on July 1, 2024 |
|
2024-07-01 18:52 |
CCTV: To follow up on yesterday’s announcement that President Xi Jinping will attend the SCO summit in Kazakhstan, what will be the topics of discussion between President Xi and other leaders at the summit, and what’s China’s expectation for the summit? Besides, China will take over the rotating presidency of the SCO after the Astana summit. Can you brief us on what will be the main focus of China’s presidency? Mao Ning: Over the past 23 years since the establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), member states have upheld the Shanghai Spirit of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development, jointly promoted solidarity and mutual trust, engaged in multilateral coordination and successfully built the SCO into a shield of security, a bridge of cooperation, a bond of friendship and a constructive force in the region. The SCO has become a fine example of a new type of international relations and regional cooperation. The upcoming Astana summit will be the most important SCO event this year. During the summit, President Xi Jinping will have in-depth exchange of views with leaders of participating countries on deepening cooperation across the board under the new circumstances and on major international and regional issues of the day, and plan for the future development of the SCO. China believes that this summit will help build more consensus, open up a new chapter of cooperation and contribute to the security, stability, development and prosperity of all countries and to building a community with a shared future for mankind. After the Astana summit, China will assume the rotating presidency of the SCO for 2024-2025, seven years since China was the SCO chair last time. China attaches great importance to the presidency and has fully begun preparations. We stand ready to work with all parties to follow the Shanghai Spirit, further deepen political, security, economic and people-to-people and cultural cooperation, advance high-quality development of the SCO and build a closer SCO community with a shared future, so as to bring more benefits to the people in the region and contribute more to lasting peace and common prosperity in the world. Xinhua News Agency: President Xi Jinping will pay state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Could you share with us the program and China’s expectation of the growth of China-Kazakhstan and China-Tajikistan relations? Mao Ning: Kazakhstan is China’s friendly neighbor and permanent comprehensive strategic partner. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 32 years ago, China-Kazakhstan relations have grown with a sound and steady momentum, and cooperation in areas such as trade and economy, investment, connectivity, energy, and cultural and people-to-people exchange has had numerous highlights. Our two countries have set a good example of good-neighborliness, friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between neighboring countries. Last year, President Xi Jinping met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev twice in Xi’an and Beijing. The two presidents drew a new blueprint for China-Kazakhstan relations, and have guided China-Kazakhstan cooperation into a golden period of fast growth. This will be President Xi’s fifth visit to Kazakhstan. During the visit, President Xi will have talks with President Tokayev and have an in-depth exchange of views with him on bilateral relations, cooperation in key areas, and the regional and international landscape. President Xi will attend state events, such as the welcoming ceremony, the signing ceremony and the welcoming banquet, and other side events. We believe that President Xi’s visit will further upgrade the bilateral relations, enrich our high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and enhance the wellbeing of our two peoples. Tajikistan is China’s friendly neighbor and comprehensive strategic partner. In recent years, under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping and President Emomali Rahmon, China-Tajikistan relations have maintained a sound momentum, and the two countries have consolidated political mutual trust, had fruitful Belt and Road cooperation, deepened cultural and people-to-people exchange, and had close cooperation in regional and international affairs. In May last year, the two presidents announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit. This will be President Xi’s second state visit to Tajikistan after five years. During the visit, President Xi will have talks with President Emomali Rahmon to have an in-depth exchange of views with him on bilateral relations, cooperation in key areas, and the regional and international landscape, and make new plans for the growth of China-Tajikistan relations. The two presidents will jointly attend various side events. China looks forward to working with Tajikistan through this visit to further enhance political mutual trust, deepen high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, bring people’s hearts closer, inject new impetus to the growth of bilateral relations, and elevate our comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level. AFP: Italian customs said today they had seized synthetic drugs from China worth EUR 630 million. Italian customs also said that two Chinese nationals related to the case were arrested in the Netherlands. Did the Foreign Ministry notice this? Can you give us some details about the case? Mao Ning: I’m not familiar with the specifics you mentioned. Let me say broadly that China remains tough on drug-related crimes and engages in international cooperation on this front. China Daily: We noted that after the commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, China issued the Beijing Declaration of the Conference Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. Can you share more details with us? Mao Ning: The commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence were |