Nation pledges to strengthen multilateralism

Beijing event marks 50th anniversary of restoration of country's lawful UN seat

Beijing has vowed to further its commitment to United Nations affairs and promoting growth among developing countries on Friday, saying that it will further safeguard the organization's status, advance global peace and prosperity and fly high the banner of true multilateralism.

"Building international consensus on the UN platform to meet global challenges together is the biggest common ground of all countries, and it is also a right choice consistent with the trend of the times," State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

Wang made the remark in the presence of foreign diplomats, officials and scholars at a Lanting Forum event held by the Foreign Ministry on Friday in Beijing to mark the 50th anniversary of the restoration of China's lawful seat in the UN.

In October 1971, the UN General Assembly at its 26th Session adopted Resolution 2758 with an overwhelming majority to restore all rights to the People's Republic of China.

"Since then, the People's Republic of China has made a great contribution to global peace and sustainable development," Andrey Denisov, Russian ambassador to China, told the forum.

"China has become part of almost every international intergovernmental organization and over 600 major international treaties," he added.

China has "earnestly fulfilled its international obligations, and honored its international commitments", and the country has "honored its responsibilities for upholding world peace", Wang Yi said.

Wang noted Beijing's push for cooling tensions between Palestine and Israel last month as president of the UN Security Council.

China has become the largest contributor of peacekeepers among the permanent members of the UN Security Council, and has participated in 29 UN peacekeeping operations and sent a total of over 50,000 peacekeepers, according to Wang.

Reminiscing about how the People's Republic of China returned to the UN in 1971, Wang highlighted the key role played by the large number of developing countries such as Albania and Algeria in proposing and supporting UN General Assembly Resolution 2758.

"This is something that we in China will never forget," Wang said, adding that China has been "firmly upholding the legitimate rights and interests of fellow developing countries and speaking up for the developing world".

As an earnest contributor to South-South cooperation and teamwork among developing countries, Beijing has provided around 400 billion yuan ($62 billion) in development assistance to 166 countries and international organizations.

"From that historic moment, the country, accounting for one-fourth of the world's population, was back to the big family of the UN, giving a boost to the UN's representativeness and bringing a reliable backbone to the cause of world peace and development," said Wu Hailong, chairman of the China Public Diplomacy Association.

At the forum, Algerian Ambassador to China Ahcene Boukhelfa offered his congratulations on the 50th anniversary, as well as the centenary of the Communist Party of China, and praised China's efforts in promoting world peace and development.

In the face of global challenges such as climate change, poverty and the lingering COVID-19 pandemic, China "has made active contributions" to addressing them, Wang Yi said.

So far, China has provided medical supplies to over 150 countries and 13 international organizations to deal with COVID-19, and it has provided 438 million doses of Chinese vaccines and raw ingredients to over 90 countries and international organizations, according to Wang.

As Saturday marks the UN Charter Day, Wang said China is ready to work with all countries to resolve differences through dialogue and negotiation, promote the modernization of global governance and jointly build a world of universal security.

The nation will also work with other countries to further enhance solidarity and win-win cooperation, treat each other with respect and as equals, uphold green development, and defend the common values of humanity-peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom, he added.