China Committed to Peaceful Path, Xi’s Vice President Says

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(Bloomberg) -- Leaders of the world’s No. 2 economy will stick to a path of peaceful development, Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said, remarks that come as Washington and Beijing take early steps to cool tensions.

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“Upholding world peace and stability is in the fundamental interest of the Chinese nation,” Wang said in a recorded speech Tuesday to the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore. “China safeguards and promotes world peace through its own development.”

Wang also sought to reassure his audience that the ruling Communist Party would continue opening China, and “maintain strong policy continuity to provide greater certainties and stability for the world.”

The comments about peaceful development underscore the efforts that China and the US are taking to reduce tensions after ties hit their worst level in years due to friction over trade, technology, Taiwan, human rights and other issues. US President Joe Biden said Monday after a meeting in Bali, Indonesia, with Chinese leader Xi Jinping that “there need not be a new Cold War” between the nations.

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Investors were rattled after Xi secured a norm-busting third term in power at a party congress last month, packing top decision-making bodies with his allies and excluding women for the first time in decades.

They are also trying to figure out what direction Xi’s signature Covid Zero strategy is heading after nearly three years of lockdowns, mass testing and closed borders that have battered the economy.

Wang took a subtle dig at the US in his remarks, saying that the “security of a country should not be built on the insecurity of others.” That echoes language Chinese diplomats have used to blame Washington and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for the outbreak of war in Ukraine.

He added the Chinese government would “work to advance common prosperity,” a perceived pivot away from a market economy and toward an egalitarian society that has also perplexed investors.

Wang is known for spearheading a crusade against corruption that Xi launched shortly after taking power in 2012. He stepped down from the Communist Party’s elite Politburo Standing Committee in 2017, taking on the ceremonial role of vice president.

Earlier this year, Xi sent Wang to the inauguration of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

Other highlights of the speech include:

  • A pledge that China would deepen Belt and Road cooperation with partners

  • Saying the Asian nation would uphold the security of global supply chains

  • Vowing that China would “earnestly implement the United Nations 2030 agenda for sustainable development”

The New Economy Forum is being organized by Bloomberg Media Group, a division of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.

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