外交部副部长乐玉成在“一带一路”国际合作高峰论坛咨询委员会第一次会议欢迎晚宴上的致辞

Remarks by Executive Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng at the Welcoming Dinner of the First Meeting of the Advisory Council of The Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF)

2018年12月15日，北京

Beijing, 15 December 2018

尊敬的各位委员，

女士们，先生们，

Members of the Advisory Council,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

首先，请允许我作为第二届“一带一路”国际合作高峰论坛筹委会秘书长，对高峰论坛咨委会的成立表示祝贺，对各位委员来华出席咨委会首次会议表示热烈欢迎！

Let me begin by expressing, as the Secretary General of the Organizing Committee of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, congratulations on the establishment of the BRF Advisory Council and warm welcome to all the members.

各位委员都是“一带一路”国际合作的积极倡导者和支持者。拉法兰先生作为法国总统特使出席了去年举行的首届高峰论坛。阿赫塔尔女士在担任联合国亚太经社会执行秘书期间，推动该组织同中方签署共建“一带一路”合作文件。范智廉爵士正担任英国财政部“一带一路”金融与专业服务特使。其他委员都对“一带一路”国际合作有深刻了解和独到见解。这么多国际知名人士共同参与咨委会，体现了对国际经济合作的积极支持，也是“一带一路”倡议收获的另一张国际信任票。

All the Council members are active advocates and supporters of international cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Mr. Jean-Pierre Raffarin attended the first BRF last year as the special envoy of the French President. Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, in her previous capacity as the Executive Secretary of UN ESCAP, supported the signing of the BRI cooperation document between ESCAP and China. Sir Douglas Flint is the UK Treasury’s Belt and Road envoy. The other members also have keen insights into international cooperation on the BRI. The fact of so many internationally renowned figures joining the Council speaks to the support for international economic cooperation and casts an international vote of confidence on the BRI.

今天，我们为了推进“一带一路”国际合作的共同目标走到一起。我本人和“一带一路”倡议也很有缘分。2013年，习近平主席在哈萨克斯坦首次提出建设“丝绸之路经济带”倡议。我作为时任中国驻哈萨克斯坦大使就在现场。我也见证了该倡议与哈萨克斯坦“光明之路”对接，见证了中欧班列对当地经济的带动效应，见证了这个世界上最大的内陆国终于通过“一带一路”倡议，在遥远的太平洋有了“出海口”。哈萨克斯坦人感叹，中国就是哈萨克斯坦的大海。今年，哈萨克斯坦举办了“一带一路”征文比赛，获得一等奖的文章中有一句话说，“一带一路”属于复兴丝绸之路的说法并不准确，因为在哈萨克斯坦，丝绸之路从未被人遗忘。这句话还可以解释为，古丝绸之路曾经造就这块土地上的繁华盛景，“一带一路”倡议正给这块土地创造新的发展机遇。

We have come together for the common purpose of advancing international cooperation on the BRI. I myself have quite some connections with the Initiative. Back in 2013 when President Xi Jinping first raised the idea of building a Silk Road Economic Belt, I was there as Chinese Ambassador to Kazakhstan. I have also witnessed how the BRI and Kazak Bright Road Initiative have complemented each other, how the China-Europe Railway Express has helped catalyze local growth, and how the world’s biggest land-locked country has gained access to the ocean thanks to the BRI. The Kazaks hail China as “Kazakhstan’s ocean”. In a BRI essay competition held in Kazakhstan earlier this year, the first prize winner wrote, “It is not exactly accurate to say that the BRI is part of the effort to revitalize the ancient Silk Road, because the Silk Road has never been forgotten in Kazakhstan. In other words, just as the ancient Silk Road contributed to the hustle and bustle on that piece of land, the BRI is generating new development opportunities for it as well.

传承古代丝绸之路精神，谋求共同发展新动力，创造共同发展新机遇，这正是中方提出“一带一路”倡议的出发点。

Carrying forward the spirit of the ancient Silk Road, and seeking fresh impetus and creating new opportunities for common development is precisely why China has put forth the BRI.

第一，“一带一路”是古丝绸之路的现代版。古丝绸之路的精髓是促进互联互通，携手共同发展。有人称之为全球化的1.0版。我们提出共建“一带一路”倡议，就是从古丝路精神中寻找解决当今世界发展问题的答案，通过促进亚欧非大陆的互联互通，让更多的国家从全球价值链、产业链中获益，让更多的陆锁国变成陆联国，让更多的土地焕发更大的生机和活力。世界银行近期提出了“‘一带一路’经济学”的研究课题。我更倾向于研究“一带一路”的发展经济学。

First, the BRI is a modern version of the ancient Silk Road. The ancient Silk Road was all about connectivity and common development, hence it is dubbed by some as “globalization 1.0”. We have proposed the BRI in search of ways to address development issues in today’s world. Greater connectivity between Asia, Europe and Africa enables more countries to benefit from the global value chain and industrial chain, turn more land-locked countries into land-linked countries, and bring about greater economic vitality on more lands. The World Bank recently conducted a study on the economics of the BRI. I would prefer to see a study on the development economics of the BRI.

第二，“一带一路”是中国改革开放的升级版。经过40年的改革开放，中国成为世界第二大经济体，130多个国家的最大贸易伙伴，有望成为世界最大的消费市场。同时，中国发展仍然面临区域不平衡问题特别是西部地区发展状况落后。西部地区拥有全国72%的国土面积、27%的人口，但只有20%的经济总量，对外贸易和对外投资均只占全国总量的7%。我们希望通过共建“一带一路”，开展新一轮高水平对外开放，为世界发展提供更多投资机遇、市场机遇和合作机遇。我们也希望通过共建“一带一路”，为中国自身的发展创造新空间、开辟新机遇，特别是推动西部地区从对外开放的后卫变前锋，形成陆海内外联动、东西双向互济的开放格局。总之，用埃及前总理沙拉夫先生的话说，“一带一路”既是“中国梦”，更是“世界梦”。

Second, the BRI promotes reform and opening-up in China. Thanks to 40 years of reform and opening-up, China has become the world’s second largest economy and the biggest trading partner of more than 130 countries, and is poised to be the world’s biggest consumer market. That said, China is still confronted with development imbalance among different regions. The less developed western region, with 72 percent of China’s landmass and 27 percent of its total population, accounts for a modest 20 percent of the GDP and 7 percent of foreign trade and outbound investment of China. We hope that joint efforts to develop the BRI will usher in a new round of high-standard opening-up, and generate more opportunities for investment, market and cooperation. We hope that such efforts will also create new space and opportunities for China’s development. And the western region, a latecomer in opening-up, will catch up and even take the lead, shaping a prospect of interconnected and mutually beneficial development between the western interior and the eastern coast. To quote former Prime Minister of Egypt Essam Sharaf, the BRI is not only a Chinese dream, but a dream for the whole world.

第三，“一带一路”是加强全球经济治理方案的中国版。拉经委执行秘书巴尔塞纳女士曾高度评价“一带一路”倡议有助于破解发展困境，也为解决全球面临的问题提供了创新的思路和开阔的视野。的确，中国是全球经济治理的积极参与者、建设者和贡献者。在当今世界面临百年未有之大变局、不稳定和不确定性增加的大背景下，我们希望通过“一带一路”倡议，为多边主义提供支持，为建设开放型世界经济提供动力，为解决全球发展问题贡献力量。“一带一路”倡议秉承共商共建共享的“黄金法则”，向世界上所有感兴趣的国家开放，积极对接国际规则标准，不搞封闭的小圈子；由各国共同协商、共同推进，不走地缘博弈的老路，不搞赢者通吃的零和游戏。正如林毅夫教授所说，“一带一路”有可能促成人类命运共同体的实现，使世界真正成为“百花齐放春满园”。

Third, the BRI outlines China’s approach to better global economic governance. Ms. Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of UN ECLAC, spoke highly of the BRI’s capacity to help address the dilemma facing globalization and to provide an innovative approach and broad perspective for resolving global issues. China actively participates in and contributes to global economic governance. The world is faced with changes unseen in a century and growing uncertainties and destabilizing factors. In such a context, we hope the BRI will provide support for multilateralism, help build an open world economy and contribute to global development. The BRI upholds the “golden rule” of consultation and cooperation for shared benefits, and is open to all interested countries around the world. The BRI is in sync with international rules and standards rather than forming an exclusive club. The BRI is advanced by all participating countries through extensive consultation rather than playing any doomed geopolitical game or the winner-takes-all, zero-sum game. Just as Professor Justin Yifu Lin said, the BRI can contribute to the realization of mankind’s aspirations for all countries to prosper and embrace a better future.

一千个人眼中就有一千个哈姆雷特。世界是丰富多彩的，各方对“一带一路”的看法也是多种多样的。但国际社会对“一带一路”倡议的支持是主流，机遇论是主基调，合作论是主旋律。有一些批评的声音和评价也不是坏事，有助于我们补足短板、改进工作。目前已有140多个国家和国际组织同中国签署合作协议，140多个国家和80多个国际组织出席了首届高峰论坛，很多国家和国际组织的基础设施合作倡议同“一带一路”形成对接，务实合作项目总金额达数千亿美元。很多人问，中方在提出“一带一路”倡议之初有没有预料到如此快的进展？我们的回答是，既在意料之中，也在意料之外。意料之中，是因为这顺应世界发展潮流，符合各国人民共同利益。意料之外，是因为没想到短时间内有如此多的国家积极响应，取得如此丰硕的成果。参考古丝绸之路的线路，“一带一路”涉及范围最初有60多国，但现在包括拉美国家在内有越来越多的国家希望加入“一带一路”，我们欢迎有意愿的国家积极参与合作。

Just as there are 1,000 Hamlets in 1,000 people’s eyes, in this world of great diversity, it is only natural that people may have different views about the BRI. Nevertheless, the majority of the international community support the BRI and see it as an opportunity for greater cooperation. It is not necessarily a bad thing to hear some criticisms and negative comments, as they could help us make improvement where we fall short. To date, more than 140 countries and international organizations have signed BRI cooperation agreements with China. The first Belt and Road Forum was attended by more than 140 countries and over 80 international organizations, many of whom have synergized their infrastructure cooperation initiatives with the BRI, leading to cooperation projects worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Many people ask us whether China had expected such rapid progress when it first came up with the BRI. Our answer is yes and no. “Yes”, because the BRI meets the trend of international development and the common interest of people worldwide. But also “no”, because we had not expected such fruitful outcomes and positive responses from so many countries in such a short period of time. With the ancient Silk Road as a reference, the BRI initially covered over 60 countries. Yet more and more countries, including those from Latin America, wish to be part of it, and we welcome the active participation of interested countries.

也有人问，“一带一路”项目是否都被中国企业拿走，只有中方获益？我们的回答是，“一带一路”建设从来不是中国一家的事，各方都参与其中，利益共享、风险共担。我完全赞同印尼冯慧兰女士的观点，“一带一路”不能只有利于中国企业，还要帮助更多国家企业参与进来并受益。在这里我想指出，多数合作项目是由中国企业和当地企业合作进行的。近期，我们正同十多个国家开展第三方市场合作。德国西门子公司同上百家中国企业合作共同开拓市场，为多个“一带一路”项目提供燃气轮机、蒸汽轮机和发电机等设备。美国通用电气公司从该倡议项目中获得了价值23亿美元的设备订单。英国渣打银行2020年底前要为该倡议的相关项目提供至少200亿美元融资支持。类似的合作案例不胜枚举。中欧班列迄今已开行超过10000列，沿途各国都从中受益，其中仅德国汉堡就有600家当地企业与中方企业开展合作。

There are also questions about whether the BRI projects are all contracted to Chinese companies and only benefit the Chinese side. Our answer is that the BRI is never just about China. It is joined by various parties who share benefits and risks together. I agree with Dr. Mari Pangestu wholeheartedly that the BRI, instead of just benefiting Chinese companies, needs to help the businesses of more countries get involved and reap benefits. I would like to point out that the majority of the BRI projects are carried out through cooperation between Chinese enterprises and local firms. Recently, we have been working with a dozen of countries on third-party cooperation. The German firm Siemens has worked with more than 100 Chinese companies in exploring markets, providing gas turbines, steam turbines, generators and other equipment to BRI projects. The US company GE won equipment orders worth US$2.3 billion from BRI projects. The British bank Standard Chartered will provide at least US$20 billion of financing for BRI projects by the end of 2020. The list goes on. Over 10,000 China Railway Express trains have traveled between China and Europe, benefiting countries along its route, including Germany where the city of Hamburg alone has 600 local businesses cooperating with Chinese companies.

有人问，“一带一路”是否增加了一些国家的债务，导致了所谓的“债务陷阱”？我们的回答是否定的。企业是“一带一路”合作的主体，当然会按照市场规律办事，不会做亏本的买卖。“一带一路”倡议提出才5年，发展中国家的债务问题要比“一带一路”古老的多，所以把债务问题扣到“一带一路”或中国头上是不公平的。当然，基础设施项目投资大、周期长，短期内收益不明显，但长期看是有回报的。就好比一对年轻夫妇贷款买房，虽然负债，但毕竟拥有了属于自己的不动产。因为短期内没有资金回报就否定长期受益，显然是片面的。当然，凡事都有改进的空间。无论是中国政府，还是中国的企业，都在努力把有关合作项目的财务可持续性做得更好。

As to questions about whether the BRI adds to the debt of some countries and creates a so-called “debt trap”, our answer is no. Businesses, as the main players in BRI cooperation, will naturally act according to the law of the market so that they don’t end up losing money. It has only been five years since China put forth the BRI. The debt problem of developing countries has a much longer history, so it would be unfair to blame the BRI or China for their debt problem. Infrastructure projects usually require long-term and large investments. They may not yield handsome returns in the short term, but these investments will pay off in the long run. It is just like when a young couple buy a home with a mortgage, they may be in debt, but they would also own some fixed assets in return. It is not reasonable to deny long-term benefits for lack of short-term returns. Having said that, there is always room for improvement with every endeavor. Both the Chinese government and businesses are working to make the BRI projects more fiscally sustainable.

还有人问，“一带一路”实际效果怎么样，有关务实合作究竟有没有效果？对于这个问题，当地民众最有发言权。我愿跟大家分享几个故事。

Some people are asking how much of an impact has the BRI made? Has the cooperation produced any results? No one can answer these questions better than the local communities. Let me share with you some stories.

一个故事是关于中亚国家乌兹别克斯坦。该国三分之一人口住在安集延地区，但当地人去首都塔什干，要么翻山越岭开上四五天车，要么坐火车绕道第三国。中国公司用900天时间帮助乌兹别克斯坦修建了一条19公里长的隧道。建成后，当地人仅用4个多小时就能抵达首都，而火车穿越整条隧道仅仅需900秒。900天成就了900秒的奇迹，赢得了当地人民的热烈欢呼。

The first story is about the central Asian country Uzbekistan. One third of the Uzbek population live in the Andijan region. In the past, if they wanted to go to Tashkent, the capital, they had to either drive four or five days in the mountains or transit through a third country by train. This changed after a Chinese company built a 19-kilometer-long tunnel in just 900 days. Now the locals can reach the capital in just four hours and it takes merely 900 seconds for the train to go through the tunnel. The 900-second miracle created in 900 days is warmly applauded by the local community.

另一个故事是关于非洲国家肯尼亚。中国帮助修建的蒙内铁路连接肯尼亚最大港口蒙巴萨和首都内罗毕，是肯尼亚百年来新建的第一条铁路，被肯方称为“世纪铁路”和“国家骄傲”。300多家当地企业参与建设，当地员工占比超过90%。铁路开通后，蒙内两地运输时间从原来10多个小时缩短为4个多小时，物流成本至少降低40%，带动GDP增长1.5%。

Another story is about the African country Kenya. The railway connecting Kenya’s biggest port city Mombasa to its capital Nairobi built by China is the first railway constructed in the country in 100 years. Kenya calls it the railway of the century and the pride of the nation. More than 300 Kenyan companies were involved in the construction and over 90 percent of the workers were locals. The railway, now in operation, has cut the travel time between Mombasa and Nairobi from more than ten hours to just over four, lowered logistics costs by at least 40 percent and contributed 1.5 percent of Kenya’s GDP growth.

得益于“一带一路”，哈萨克斯坦有了出海口，老挝将从陆锁国变成陆联国，白俄罗斯有了自己的轿车，马尔代夫拥有了自己的跨海大桥，巴基斯坦、塔吉克斯坦解决了长期受困扰的缺电问题。这样的故事还有很多。讲这些故事我也是受了马凯硕先生的启发，他建议我们把“一带一路”实际成果展现出来，多讲述“一带一路”如何使有关国家受益的成功故事。这些故事说明“一带一路”不是中国一家的成功故事，而是各方共建“一带一路”的成功故事。

Thanks to the BRI, Kazakhstan now has access to the sea; Laos will become land-linked instead of land-locked; Belarus can produce its own sedan cars; the Maldives has a cross-sea bridge; Pakistan and Tajikistan have overcome long-standing power shortages ... the list goes on. Actually, it is Professor Kishore Mahbubani who suggested that we share these stories to show the concrete outcomes of the BRI and how it helps benefit some countries. These stories show that the BRI does not benefit just China; it is a success shared by all partner parties.

各位委员，

Members of the Advisory Council,

共建“一带一路”正经历从双边合作起步，到多、双边合作共进的进程。去年5月，我们在北京举办首届“一带一路”国际合作高峰论坛，与世界各国共同规划合作蓝图，启动了多边合作进程。在首届高峰论坛上，很多外国领导人要求高峰论坛定期举办。为此，我们将于明年4月举办第二届高峰论坛，目前筹备工作正在稳步推进中。我们要在第一届论坛提出的“三共”即共商、共建、共享理念基础上进一步打出“三高”即高质量、高标准、高水平的理念。我们有信心与合作伙伴共同努力，实现这一追求。

BRI cooperation was first conducted through bilateral channels and is shifting to multilateral and bilateral progress in parallel. At the first BRF held in Beijing in May 2017, we worked together with countries around the world to draw a blueprint for cooperation and launched the process of multilateral cooperation. Many foreign leaders spoke about the need to hold the forum on a regular basis. In response to their suggestion, we plan to host the second BRF in April 2019. Preparations are well underway. Building on the principle of consultation, cooperation and benefit for all put forward at the first BRF, we will champion high quality and high standards in our cooperation. We are confident that with the joint efforts of all partners, this goal will be met.

咨委会是高峰论坛筹委会推动成立的国际名人小组，旨在为高峰论坛发展汇聚国际智慧、凝聚国际共识、推进国际合作。我们期待各位委员积极参与咨委会工作，在国际上发出解读“一带一路”的“好声音”，同时为高峰论坛未来发展贡献智慧和力量，为“一带一路”国际合作作出更多贡献！

As a group of internationally renowned figures brought together by the BRF Organizing Committee, the Advisory Council aims to pool international wisdom, build international consensus, and advance international cooperation in connection with the BRF. We welcome your active participation in the Council’s activities, your balanced interpretation of the BRI to the world, and your insights on the forum’s future development, which will make more contribution to Belt and Road cooperation.

谢谢！

Thank you.