China’s major-country diplomacy yielded fruits in 2016, as evidenced by remarkable progress in foreign relations, rising global status and big strides on the world stage.
New patterns for major-country relations
In the year, China-US relations continued to make progress. The heads of state had three fruitful meetings. At the eighth US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in June, more than 100 results were achieved, making it the most fruitful round of the dialogue series. The two countries also progressed in other fields of their relations. In February, they held the first round of bilateral discussions on nuclear security, reached important consensuses, and jointly constructed the nuclear security center of excellence in Beijing. Military cooperation was strengthened. The Chinese Navy took part in the US-orchestrated Rim of the Pacific exercise, and the two militaries also held the humanitarian-assistance and disaster-relief exercise. China overtook Canada to become the biggest trading partner of the US, and two-way investments surged.
Also in 2016, China-Russian relations continued to develop in a sound and healthy way, and the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination was elevated to a new stage. Cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative made important headway, and an agreement was signed to integrate that initiative with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. China-Russia cooperation in strategic security was also lifted to a new level. In order to respond to their common threat, China and Russia expanded the scale and scope of joint military exercises, and held the first computer-enabled anti-missile defense exercise code-named Aerospace Security-2016. On the deployment of the US THAAD system in South Korea, the two pledged to take joint action when necessary. Deepening strategic cooperation between China and Russia has become the foundation for a stable global strategic pattern.
China-Europe relations also became closer, and important progress was made in that comprehensive strategic partnership. In particular, EU nations positively and actively responded to the Belt and Road Initiative, all major EU countries have joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and readily aligned their national development strategies with the Belt and Road Initiative, thus building a strong bond between China and Europe.
Relations with neighbors stable and improving
China implemented the principles of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness for developing relations with neighboring countries, which were put forward by President Xi Jinping. In 2016, China’s relations with neighboring countries improved greatly. First, important progress was made in cooperation with countries in Central Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia in the joint implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative. Second, the South China Sea tensions were significantly eased. The 19th China-ASEAN Summit adopted four important documents, which are conducive to safeguarding peace and stability in the South China Sea, and reiterated the China-proposed “dual track” system to peacefully settle the South China Sea disputes through dialogues and consultations. In particular, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s China visit helped bring bilateral relations back onto the track of good neighborliness, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. Third, China’s overall relations with some countries in the region also made breakthroughs. For instance, during President Xi’s visit to Cambodia, the two sides signed 31 important cooperation agreements, and elevated bilateral ties to a new level. In November, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak made a historic visit to China, which boosted the comprehensive strategic partnership already established between the two nations. The most outstanding achievements in China-Malaysia relations were the strengthened security cooperation and the launch of the Malacca Gateway project, which is a joint project between the two nations.
Unity and cooperation with developing nations elevated
In developing relations with African and all developing nations, China implemented the principles of sincerity, practical results, affinity and good faith, and upgraded friendly and cooperative relations with the developing countries. In the year, China’s relations with African and Latin American countries scaled new heights.
In the new era, high-level visits between China and African countries have become more frequent, and their traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperative relations were also deepened. In December 2015, the second Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation was held in Johannesburg, which was considered a milestone in the China-African relations. President Xi Jinping and African leaders agreed to upgrade China-African relations to comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership. President Xi also proposed to implement 10 major China-Africa cooperation plans, and pledged to provide $60 billion for the implementation of the plans. This won a warm welcome and accolades from African leaders, and will greatly help the Chinese-African relations develop.
Relations with Latin America upgraded
President Xi Jinping has made three visits to Latin America since the beginning of his presidency, and upgraded relations with the region to a new level. The first ministerial meeting of the Forum of China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States was held in 2015, which helped open a new chapter for the development of China-Latin America relations. To date, China has established comprehensive strategic partnerships with seven Latin American countries. The fast-growing economic and trade relations are the priorities in the China-Latin American ties. China is now the second-largest trading partner of Latin America, and is one of the major destinations of the exports from those countries. China’s cumulative direct investment in Latin America has amounted to more than $150 billion, and China has become a major driving force for the economic development of Latin America. Finally, the ambitious plan of building the China-Latin America community of common destiny, which was proposed by President Xi, is being implemented.
China’s global status has been significantly elevated. The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by President Xi three years ago, is now being implemented, and has achieved better-than-expected results. At present, more than 100 countries and international organizations are taking part in the initiative, and the China-proposed AIIB now has 67 members, including all major European countries and four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. The Belt and Road Initiative has become a new model and platform for win-win cooperation. At the same time, the G20 Hangzhou Summit, and the APEC leaders’ meeting in Lima, in which China played a leading role, all made historic achievements, and the concepts, proposals and plans put forward by China helped set the tone and foundation for the summit meetings, serving as a prescription for the stagnant world economy to head to a recovery. These are important manifestations of China’s role at the center of the world stage.
But there are unfavorable regional and global factors for China. In particular, after US President-elect Donald Trump made unfriendly remarks towards China, relations between the two nations now have to brace for grave challenges. However, with China’s strong development and the popularity and acceptance of its foreign policy, it is highly probable that China will maintain good neighborly and international relations and is poised to enjoy a prolonged strategic opportunity for development.
