Multilateralism stressed at forum

Strengthening cooperation imperative for recovery of global economy, say experts

Strengthening multilateral cooperation is imperative for promoting a balanced recovery of the world economy and meeting major global challenges such as climate change, leading experts said.

Xie Fuzhan, president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said it has become more "important and urgent" than ever to advocate multilateralism and support the free trade system, as growing unilateral actions could give rise to isolation and disorder in the world economy.

He made the remark on Monday while addressing the Global Strategic Dialogue 2021, an international webinar on the open global economy co-hosted by the CASS and China Daily.

To promote an inclusive and balanced global economic recovery, major economies should strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination and take into consideration potential negative spillovers into other economies in their policymaking, Xie said.

He also called for more joint efforts to meet the challenge of global warming and the establishment of a new climate governance system whereby different economies can maximize their contributions to carbon reduction.

Naoyuki Yoshino, a professor emeritus at Keio University in Japan and former dean of the Asian Development Bank Institute, said it is possible to charge taxes on CO2 emissions at the same rate globally to facilitate green development.

Experts at the webinar also noted China's potential to further promote an open world economy, rise to major global challenges and create new cooperation opportunities with the United States.

Zhou Shuchun, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said it is China's steadfast stance to advocate economic globalization and make it more inclusive, open and beneficial to all. This should also become a consensus in the international community.

China has been sharing its domestic market with the rest of the world, creating a more internationalized and fair business environment, promoting regional economic integration and supporting the multilateral trade system based on the World Trade Organization, Zhou said.

The tone-setting annual Central Economic Work Conference listed promoting opening-up at the institutional level as one of China's key tasks for next year, with measures to ensure that domestic businesses and their foreign counterparts are treated equally.

Yu Yongding, a CASS academician, highlighted the cooperation potential between China and the US in combating "common enemies", including the COVID-19 pandemic, global warming, poverty, terrorism and pollution.

Yu said he believes that if China and the US find and fight "common enemies", the world's two biggest economies will be able to escape the Thucydides Trap－which describes the tendency toward conflict when an emerging power threatens to displace an existing power.

Amar Bhattacharya, a senior fellow of the Washington-based Brookings Institution's global economy and development program, said more engagements between China and the US regarding climate change may help strengthen the resolve of the US to combat the issue.

Ouyang Shijia contributed to this story.