Belt and Road Initiative the most popular public goods: FM

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi gives a press conference for the fifth session of China’s 12th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, March 8, 2017. [Photo: Xinhua]

The Belt and Road Initiative has become the most popular public goods and the best platform for international cooperation with the brightest prospects in the world, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Wednesday.

More than 20 heads of state and government, over 50 leaders of international organizations, over 100 ministerial-level officials, as well as over 1,200 delegates from various countries and regions will participate in the Belt and Road forum for international cooperation in May in Beijing, Wang told a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress.

The idea of the Belt and Road Initiative came from China but it belongs to the world with its benefits flowing to all countries, Wang said.

While the trends of protectionism and unilateralism are rising, the Belt and Road Initiative has become the common cause of the world which will help rebalance the economic globalization by making it more universally-beneficial and inclusive, he said.

The forum in May will build consensus and connect development strategies of various countries. It will also examine cooperation in key areas and finalize major projects in infrastructure connectivity, trade and investment, financial support and people-to-people exchanges, he said.

Medium and long term cooperation initiatives will be announced and long-term cooperation mechanisms explored to build a closer and more result-oriented network of partnerships, he said.