Xi Focus: 4 key takeaways from Xi's diplomacy after CPC congress

BEIJING -- Shortly after the successful convening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, leaders of four countries visited Beijing within a week.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and Chinese president, met with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong, Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, respectively, during this past week.

Here are four key takeaways from their meetings.

COMRADES AND BROTHERS

During the meeting with Trong, Xi said that the two countries should carry forward the traditional friendship of "comrades and brothers" nurtured by the older generation of leaders.

China and Vietnam are both socialist countries led by the Communist Party, with the same political system, shared ideals and beliefs, and similar development paths. "Comrades and brothers" speaks to the particularity of China-Vietnam relations, and this traditional friendship is a common and valuable asset for both parties and countries.

After their talks, Xi awarded the Friendship Medal of the People's Republic of China to Trong, while Trong responded by saying that he will work with the Vietnamese people on his post to continue to adhere to the socialist path, constantly consolidate and deepen the Vietnam-China friendly relations as "comrades and brothers," and jointly realize a brighter future.

IRONCLAD FRIENDSHIP

"China and Pakistan are good friends, good partners and good brothers. Amid global changes and instability in recent years, the two countries have supported each other and forged ahead, demonstrating an ironclad friendship," Xi said when meeting with Sharif.

"China expressed deep sympathies to the Pakistani people concerning the devastating floods that have hit the country, and will provide additional emergency relief to help with post-flood reconstruction," Xi said.

Xi put forward a series of pragmatic initiatives to deepen China-Pakistan cooperation, including advancing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with greater efficiency, and making CPEC an exemplar of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, welcoming Pakistan to export more quality agri-products to China, and supporting Chinese provinces with strong industries in pairing up with Pakistani partners to advance industrial cooperation.

"No country has ever helped Pakistan or other developing countries with such wholehearted sincerity," Sharif said, noting that Pakistan-China friendship is "unbreakable," and that Pakistan will always stand firmly with China.

SINCERITY, REAL RESULTS, AMITY AND GOOD FAITH

While visiting Tanzania in 2013, Xi put forth the principles of sincerity, real results, amity and good faith to guide China's cooperation with African countries. It has now become the basic policy guiding China's solidarity and cooperation with other developing countries.

During their talks, Xi and Hassan announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Xi mentioned that the Tazara Railway marked a milestone in both China-Tanzania and China-Africa friendship. He said even when China was poor, it had tightened its belt to help its African brothers build this railway.

"Now that China is more developed, it is better placed to act on the principles of sincerity, real results, amity and good faith, to help our African friends achieve common development, and build a stronger China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era," Xi said.

"Tanzania views China as its top real friend and will always be a trustworthy partner for China," Hassan echoed Xi's remarks.

STABILITY AND CONSISTENCY

China's policy toward Germany has maintained a high degree of stability and consistency, and it is hoped that Germany will follow a positive China policy for the mutual benefit of both countries, Xi said when meeting with Scholz.

This was the first visit to China by a European leader since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and also the first visit to China by Scholz since he took office as German Chancellor.

"The visit will further enhance the mutual understanding and trust between the two sides and deepen practical cooperation in various fields," Xi said.

According to foreign media reports, more than 100 German companies applied to join the visit, of which 12 well-known companies were shortlisted, which speaks volumes about the attractiveness of the Chinese market.

Germany firmly supports trade liberalization, supports economic globalization, and opposes decoupling, Scholz said, also expressing his hope for closer trade and economic cooperation with China.