Belt and Road Initiative benefits everyone, says Foreign Minister

The Belt and Road Initiative is a global public good and follows international rules, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on the press conference for the First Session of the 13th National People's Congress on Thursday.

The initiative is a platform for international cooperation thus follows market principles, Wang said, responding to questions that some Westerners seem to be harboring doubts over the initiative's transparency and its conformity to international rules.

"It's a transparent initiative launched by China. It follows the golden rules of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits," Wang said, adding that the initiative aims to be equal footed, inclusive and universally beneficial.

"The planning and implementation of the initiative's projects have been discussed by the participants in the open. No country is dominating the process. All parties have an equal say. There is no back room deal. Everything is transparent. There is no winner takes all. Every project delivers win-win results," Wang said.

A large number of projects carried out under the initiative are "adding needed momentum to the economic and social development of the host countries," Wang said.

He cited examples such as more than a dozen power stations being built in Pakistan to address power shortage and that of a Chinese company purchasing a Serbian steel mill, turning it around in less than a year and saving more than 5,000 local jobs.

"We sincerely ask for ideas from all parties so that together we will make a success of the Belt and Road Initiative," Wang said."Our goal is to not only strengthen physical interconnectivity of infrastructure, but also to improve institutional connectivity of policies, rules and standards."

The initiative's projects must be of high standards, high quality as well as results oriented and economic viable that benefit not only China but the world, the foreign minister added.