Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
MINSK, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) — The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is confidently becoming a global diplomatic player and is looking to the future. The peoples of Belarus and China made an invaluable contribution to the victory in World War II. Today, in an extremely difficult international situation, it is very important to jointly protect the memory of our common Great Victory. This was stated by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in a written exclusive interview with Xinhua on the eve of his trip to China to attend the SCO summit in Tianjin and events to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.
At the invitation of the Chairman of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping, the head of Belarus will visit China for the 16th time. A. Lukashenko noted that he has known the Chinese leader for a long time. "Xi Jinping thinks strategically, looks decades ahead," he said. "In today's completely unpredictable situation, he boldly takes on leadership and offers not only China, but the entire world a clear and specific path of development. He has something that many politicians in the West should learn from: responsibility to his people, strategic thinking, and an iron will."
A. Lukashenko stated that Belarus and China are connected by the highest degree of mutual trust and respect. “For Belarus, Chairman Xi Jinping is not only a reliable partner, but also a sincere friend. Thanks to his unconditional support, Belarusian-Chinese relations have reached the highest level of all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership in history,” he noted. “In contrast to those who are trying to ‘bring democracy’ with bombs and sanctions, China shows that it is possible to develop peacefully and calmly, with respect for other states.”
The President of Belarus recalled that more than 30 years have passed since his first visit to China. “China was completely different at that time, but it immediately became clear: this country has the future,” he said. “Every time I come to China, I notice how quickly it is changing, and I admire how carefully they preserve their traditions.”
According to A. Lukashenko, China's achievements in areas where it has already become a world leader are impressive: in the production of industrial robots, the development of unmanned vehicles and trucks, and the development of artificial intelligence. China is making great efforts in the social sphere, in education and healthcare, aimed at improving the quality of life of people. "China as a whole is the brightest example of how to combine dynamic economic development with care for people," he emphasized.
A. Lukashenko said that Belarus was among the first to join the Belt and Road initiative and that cooperation with China has yielded tangible results over the years. He particularly noted that the Chinese-Belarusian industrial park Great Stone has become a working platform where enterprises with modern technologies, digital solutions and innovative approaches are created. “This is where competencies are born, new jobs are created and the future of the economy is shaped,” he said.
According to the President, he has the most positive expectations for the upcoming visit. A. Lukashenko expressed confidence that this visit provides another opportunity to deepen strategic partnership and gives new impetus to Belarusian-Chinese cooperation in trade and economic sphere, activation of joint projects in science, technology, industrial cooperation. “I am absolutely convinced: Belarusian-Chinese cooperation will only strengthen. Together we implement large-scale projects, support each other in the international arena. This is the true diplomacy of the 21st century,” the head of Belarus said.
According to A. Lukashenko, Belarus is ready to continue to work closely with the Chinese side in several key areas. Firstly, this is deepening the symbiosis of national development strategies, increasing cooperation in the areas of digital economy, logistics, high technologies, as well as searching for new ways to expand trade and economic integration. Secondly, the mechanisms of intergovernmental cooperation will be further improved to increase the efficiency of coordination and implementation of large projects, ensuring their full compliance with the common strategic interests of the parties. Thirdly, special emphasis will be placed on innovation and advanced technologies as a key driver of economic growth. The two countries have already jointly held the Years of Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation. Fourthly, Belarus and China will continue to expand humanitarian and cultural exchanges, strengthening mutual understanding and trust between their peoples.
A year has passed since Belarus joined the “Shanghai family”. A. Lukashenko said that the SCO is an organization looking to the future. Over 20 years, it has formed a unique model of regional security and development based on multilateral cooperation. The organization has proven that security issues can be resolved not through confrontation, but through joint measures – sharing intelligence, conducting exercises, building trust between states. Thanks to this, it was possible to prevent hundreds of terrorist attacks and create a system that stabilizes Eurasia. Several key conventions were signed, the Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure /RATS/ was created, a threat database was formed, hundreds of joint operations were conducted. After 2020, the SCO added new key areas of cooperation – cybersecurity, biosecurity and public health protection.
"We can say that the SCO is confidently becoming a global diplomatic player. The organization offers a new approach to international relations, different from Western models of hegemony. Thanks to the "Shanghai spirit", equal cooperation and the search for compromises are ensured. The SCO integrates the Belt and Road initiative, forms the principles of digital governance and creates dialogue platforms for developing countries," said A. Lukashenko.
According to him, the economic component is no less significant in the SCO's activities. "I would even say that it should play a key role. To do this, we need to create effective mechanisms for mutual settlements in national currencies, develop investment infrastructure, logistics," the president emphasized.
He also noted that humanitarian and cultural cooperation is becoming increasingly important. The countries interact in the areas of education, justice and social protection, developing the “Shanghai spirit” of mutual respect.
“I would like to note the enormous and extremely important work of China, promoting the concept of a community with a common destiny for humanity, which is woven into the Shanghai cooperation program,” said A. Lukashenko.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. A. Lukashenko noted that the great war of resistance of the Chinese people became not only an integral part of national history, but also the most important chapter of the world anti-fascist struggle. "As a historian, I understand especially well how terrible this war was and what an invaluable contribution our peoples made to the common Victory. This is the greatest lesson in courage, fortitude and patriotism for many future generations of our fellow citizens," he said.
The head of state stated that the Xinhua Agency photo exhibition opened in Minsk to mark the 80th anniversary of the Victory and the awarding of Belarusian veterans who participated in the battles for the liberation of China with jubilee medals of the PRC help preserve the memory of those events and educate young people on them.
"This is especially important today, in an extremely difficult international situation, when some are trying to distort and rewrite history, it is very important to jointly protect the memory of our common Great Victory," said A. Lukashenko. "In the future, Belarus and China will certainly continue to implement such joint projects, and will comprehensively support educational and cultural initiatives in order to preserve the truth and memory of that war and our Victory. Otherwise, everything could happen again."
Currently, the Global South is gaining momentum. “The countries of the Global South act independently based on their own interests. They refuse to automatically repeat other people’s decisions, insist on peaceful resolution of conflicts, equality and openness in the economy, advocate for the participation of all countries in solving global problems, including climate problems. This force is already influencing the world order, and its role will only increase. This is a new center of power,” A. Lukashenko noted.
“And in the future, we count on continuing fruitful cooperation with China as one of the undisputed leaders of the Global South and the entire world. For the sake of our countries, for the sake of our peoples,” the head of Belarus concluded. –0–
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