This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, and over the past 10 years the initiative has not only laid a solid foundation for win-win cooperation among Belt and Road countries and regions, but also injected new momentum into economic growth and made contributions to improving people's well-being across the world.

From 2013 to 2022, the total volume of imports and exports between China and Belt and Road countries and regions reached $19.1 trillion, growing at an average annual rate of 6.4 percent, and two-way investment exceeded $380 billion. In 2022 alone, China's import and export of goods to Belt and Road countries and regions amounted to $2.07 trillion, double that of 2013. The flourishing development of trade between them and ever-improving trade liberalization and facilitation have also injected a new impetus into global openness and cooperation.

At a time when the world is facing increasing instability, trade protectionism is on the rise, and globalization is encountering headwinds, China and Belt and Road countries and regions have achieved flourishing trade relations thanks to joint efforts to increase interconnectivity in infrastructure and rules, and people-to-people exchanges.

Over the past decade, China has been actively building foreign-related rules, standards and institutions, and promoting the application of Chinese standards and regulations in overseas projects. In order to meet the challenges of the digital financial era, China's central bank has also accelerated joint research and innovation, information sharing and regulatory cooperation in the field of fintech with Belt and Road countries and regions, ensuring the smooth development of the "Digital Silk Road".

China has given full play to its advantages in strengthening cooperation with Belt and Road countries and regions in digital economy education, besides training digital economy talents, which has helped their farmers increase income. China has also been deepening medical and health cooperation with Belt and Road countries and regions. After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, it provided a large number of vaccines, effectively promoting the resumption of their economic recovery.

To promote the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, China should build an international circulation model that is more dependent on Belt and Road and Global South countries. As the world's factory, China will continue to provide the world with more "made in China" and "created in China" brands to form mutually complementary economic and trade ties with Belt and Road countries and regions and beyond.

- BEIJING NEWS