Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol. 60/No. 39 i Beijing Review

The world is undergoing tremendous chang-es and adjustments. While some developed countries are seeing a decline in influence, emerging countries are ratcheting up their influence on the rest of the world. Against this backdrop of global transformation, China’s positive role in global governance is propping up the world’s peace and development. The strength and continuous growth make it possible for China to assert a positive influence on global governance. After 68 years of continuous effort, China has cast off poverty and weakness and grown to be the world’s second largest economy. This miracle of development is unprecedented in both Chinese and world history. China’s achievements have been regarded as a success story in terms of development. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Central Government…

The author is a professor and Associate Dean of the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University As a main beneficiary of globalization, China has firmly committed to further- ing its advancement. Beijing has not only strongly supported free trade worldwide, but also advocated various forms of global governance. It is apparent that since 2012, when China convened the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the nation has undertaken a straight- forward approach to an all-win type of new globalization, often taking a prominent lead-ership role which shapes an ever-changing global political landscape. A beneficiary To begin with, China is a major beneficiary of globalization. At an earlier stage, when the People’s Republic of China was contained by the U.S. and its followers, the People’s Republic…

The ancient Silk Roads dating back over 2,000 years were bonds linking Asia and Europe and bridging the civilizations in the East and the West. Now, the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 has brought new momentum to Asia-Europe cooperation. On September 14 and 15, the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), a platform dedicated to Asian de- velopment, held a special meeting themed “Belt and Road: Building Synergy With EU Policies and Strategies” in Paris with promoting infrastruc- ture connectivity between Asia and Europe as a major focus. In a geographical sense, Eurasia is Earth’s largest landmass, but the two continents are very different from each other in terms of their economy, history and culture. The Belt and Road Initiative can be seen as…

58 mln kw Nuclear power capacity China aims to have in operation by 2020 68.7% Index of entrepreneur confidence for the third quarter of 2017, 17.5 percentage points higher than in the same period of 2016, based on a survey of over 5,000 industrial companies 10.76 bln yuan Combined investment of eight fixed assets investment projects approved by the National Development and Reform Commission in August 1.09 tln yuan Total new lending extended by Chinese banks in August 1.86% Non-performing loan ratio of Chinese commercial banks at the end of August 25.27 mln tons Import volume of coal in August, a year-on-year decline of 5 percent 33.98 mln tons Import volume of crude oil in August, a year-on-year increase of 3.4 percent and 8.4 percentage points lower than that in…

Gwadar Port Free Zone During Premier Li Keqiang’s visit to Pakistan in May 2013, China and Pakistan agreed to build a China-Pakistan economic corridor to promote energy and transportation infrastructure development, among other projects. During President Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan in April 2015, closer bilateral coopera- tion was again highlighted. As a key element of the China- Pakistan Economic Corridor and an essential component of the Gwadar Port development project, a free-trade zone aims to improve trade logistics, facilitate processing trade, and promote warehousing and financial services. A groundbreaking ceremony for the free-trade zone was held on September 1, 2016. Attended by then Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, it ushered in a new phase of the port de-velopment that includes the construction of an industrial park. The zone will…

China recently announced that it will further lower the market access thresholds in areas like banking and the securities industry to attract more foreign investment. The aim is to promote the steady growth of foreign investment in China’s pursuit of a better business environment. Market entry barriers will be relaxed in specific areas like new energy vehicle manufacturing, ship design, air- craft maintenance, gas stations, artist booking agencies and insurance. This is definitely good news which gives foreign investors more choices. At the same time, an increasing number of overseas small to medium-sized businesses are eyeing the lucrative Chinese market against the back-drop of economic stagnation worldwide. To some overseas companies, commercial opportu- nities in China not only mean money, but also the means to rejuvenate their flagging fortunes. China…

The author is dean of the Institute for Contemporary China Studies at Tsinghua University One of the most remarkable achieve- ments China has made since the 18th CPC National Congress is in ecological preservation. The goal of pursuing ecological progress has been put into practice ever since it was included in the CPC Constitution five years ago. China’s investment in improving the eco-logical environment has doubled during the past five years and reached an unprecedented amount. Its green energy sector has seen explo- sive growth. It has become a large natural gas consumer, with 300 million people, equal to the U.S. population, using this clean energy. In 2012, clean energy, which also includes hydro, wind and solar power, as well as nuclear power, accounted for 14.5 percent of the total…

The author is a writer and sinologist based in Germany The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will take place on October 18. A communi-qué, issued after the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee in October last year, states that the 19th CPC National Congress constitutes a crucial event in the political life of the Party and the state. The CPC is China’s guiding force, and also key to the country’s success. With around 90 million members, the CPC is the world’s big-gest political party today. One of the CPC’s essential characteristics is its strong anchor-age in the hearts of all Chinese people. Its members emanating from all social strata and regions of the country, the CPC is a people’s party in the…

ARCHITECT RECEIVES INTERNATIONAL PRIZE Zhang Ke, 47, founder of a leading architectural design firm in China and guest professor at Harvard University, won the 2017 Alvar Aalto Medal in Finland on September 12, one of the most internationally recognized architecture prizes. Zhang was born in east China’s Anhui Province. He achieved his bachelor’s degree in ar- chitecture at Tsinghua University in 1993 and got two master’s degrees respectively at Tsinghua in 1996 and at the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1998. In 2001, Zhang together with other three partners set up the studio ZAO/standardarchitecture in Beijing. The 2017 Alvar Aalto medalist impressed the jury with his focus on sustainable architecture. Zhang uses historic references as means of pre- serving tradition. By combining landscape elements in his work, Zhang subtly…

The author is deputy chief economist at the China Center for International Economic Exchange From the macro perspective of economic size and growth speed, China is the world’s second largest economy, with its GDP growing 6.7 percent and reaching $11 trillion last year. It contributed more than 34 percent to the world’s gross value added in 2016. Specifically, China’s ongoing poverty reduc- tion campaign contributes greatly to the world. During the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) pe- riod, China has pledged to lift 70 million people out of poverty. With the government’s various targeted policies, the poor will be employed, with increased income and improved welfare. As China is an important part of the global com-munity, addressing China’s challenges, most notably poverty, means solving a large part of the world’s problems…

The author is an associate researcher with the China Institute of International Studies This year marks the 45th anniversary of normalization of diplomatic ties between China and Japan. Against this backdrop, there have been growing calls in both countries for improvement in bilateral relations. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is well known for his hawkish stance toward China and revi- sionist take on Japan’s crimes during World War II (WWII), has nonetheless shown positive signs in recent months regarding China. Are China-Japan relations really on the upswing? An unusual move The Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo where 14 Class-A war criminals in WWII are honored is a symbol of Japan’s militarist past. Abe had not only made repeated visits to the shrine before he became prime minister, but also paid…

Zhi Shuping, Minister of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China (AQSIQ) elaborated at a press conference in Beijing on September 13 on a newly issued policy that aims at improving the quality of homegrown products and services and advancing the upgrading of China’s manufacturing industry. Edited excerpts of his speech are as follow: The CPC Central Committee and the State Council on September 12 issued guidelines for implementing a quality improvement cam- paign. It is the first time the Central Government has drawn up such a product quality action plan, which will have far-reaching influence on the development and upgrading of China’s in- dustries and economy in the future. Dear Readers, Forum is a column that provides a space for varying perspectives on contemporary Chinese…