On June 15, 2021, the Bratislava Forum 2021, organized by the GLOBAL THINK Tank, was held online. Wang Huiyao, Director of the Globalization Think Tank (CCG), was invited to participate in the exhibition entitled "Global Trade: Restoring Optimism? (Global Trade - Optimism Restored?)" discussion. Focusing on the new stages and challenges of international trade in the post-COVID-19 era, the meeting discussed ways to restore and reshape the WTO and its decision-making bodies, build a strong, transparent and equitable multilateral trading system, and strengthen trust among members. The panelists included Cecilia Malmström, visiting professor at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and former EU trade commissioner, Susan Danger, CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in the EU, Wilhelm Molterer, Chairman of the Board of Directors of GLOBSEC, former Chairman of the Austrian People's Party, former Austrian Deputy Prime Minister and former Austrian Chancellor of Finance. The discussion was moderated by Sasha Vakulina, business editor at Euronews.
GLOBSEC is a Bratislava-based non-governmental organization that has been hosting the GLOBAL BRATISLAVA Forum annually since 2005, focusing on security, international relations, transatlantic cooperation and other issues, and is one of the most important security forums in the world. The forum was attended by heads of government from dozens of countries and policy-influential think tank scholars, including Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová, Polish President Andrzej Duda, Croatian Minister for Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger, Czech Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček, Minister of Transport, Austrian Prime Minister Sebastian Kurz, Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanović, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs of Slovakia Ivan Korčok, Minister of Public Administration of the Government of Slovenia Boštjan Koritnik), Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhánek, Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď, North Macedonian Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan, Japanese Defense Minister Yasusu Nakayama, President of the Brookings Institution John Allen, Renowned American Political Economist Professor Francis Fukuyama, Atlantic Council Executive Vice Chairman Damon Wilson, GLOBSEC Think Tank President Róbert Vass, Microsoft President Brad Smith, Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Marco S. Marko Čadež and others.
As a representative of a Chinese think tank, Dr. Wang Huiyao expressed the following views on the multilateral trading system, WTO reform, and international understanding of China at the forum:
I think there's still some optimism in trade. The World Bank recently released its global economic outlook report, and China, the United States, and European countries are recovering rapidly. We saw that globalization and global trade were a builder of prosperity in the 75 or 76 years after World War II, and we avoided World War III because we had trade. But now there are indeed challenges to anti-globalization, and populism, nationalism, all of which are playing a powerful role. But from my perspective, we still support the WTO, and we already have four new Deputy Directors Generals, including one from China. We would like to see a range of developments, including the digital economy, trade facilitation and investment facilitation. We can further establish a mechanism for global trade, which requires the efforts of all countries, including the United States, the European Union and China.
Second, regional trade is also booming. ASEAN has now become China's largest trading partner; the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has also been signed. It is currently one of the largest free trade agreements in the world, accounting for about a third of global trade and the global population. At the same time, China and the EU also recently concluded negotiations on the China-EU Comprehensive Investment Treaty. We now face some challenges, but I still hope that the treaty will be truly beneficial to European companies. The European Union Chamber of Commerce has contacted hundreds of members in China, most of whom still want to be in China, believing it is profitable in China. So you can see that China has a growing middle class of 400 million, which could reach 500 million in a few years, and it will become the world's largest attractive market, generating huge trade.
Since China's accession to the WTO, China's exports have grown sevenfold and imports from around the world have increased sixfold — it's mutually beneficial. European companies, American companies, are very profitable. So I think we really need to maintain trade. If we can truly stop the crisis brought about by the epidemic, we must work trade.
For example, even during last year's pandemic, China's train trade with mainland Europe has increased by 50 percent over the past year, with 12,000 trains between China and Europe. The problem now is the existence of protectionism. For example, the Trump administration's tax on China of about $360 billion is actually a huge damage to American businesses and consumers, and it is not good for the world. So I think when we see some regional prosperity, we now have ASEAN, APEC, and we can talk about all these trade issues through multilateral platforms. The UK wants to be a member of the CPTPP, and China has said it wants to join. I still hope that reason will prevail. Geopolitics and cold war mentality cannot continue, and we must avoid any geopolitical catastrophe. Now we have to face the pandemic, and we have to cooperate. I think that's the great thing that really needs to be strongly supported on the go.
Indeed, China has many controversial issues. So how do you find a more optimistic angle in this situation? I think people will see facts and figures over time. China remains the world's largest economic growth force, contributing more than a third of global GDP growth. China is currently the only country in the world where it can move freely, and there are very few new COVID-19 cases every day. It may take some time for people to get used to it and see a different China. China's system is a little bit different, but as Deng Xiaoping said, it doesn't matter, "Whether it's a white cat or a black cat, catching a mouse is a good cat." Let's not focus too much on ideological stuff. If this system works for China, lifting 800 million people out of poverty and reducing poverty for 70 percent of the world's population, that would be enough. So I think we need to understand each other. Of course, China also needs to do a better job of its narrative and communication. As President Xi Jinping said, we must create a credible, lovely and respectable image of China. I think we have a lot of work to do in that regard.
Let's find common ground in the pandemic, fighting the pandemic, climate change, cybersecurity and other issues, rather than artificially creating geopolitical issues. We are so intertwined in the 21st century. China has supplied the world with supplies, and the world has invested in China. Some European automakers sell more cars in China than they do in Europe, as do American companies. I think, over time, people will realize the good of China: China has never sent troops to any place, never colonized any place, never invaded any country. China is a peaceful country, and it has been like this for thousands of years. It may take time for people to embrace this different culture. Let us compete peacefully.
In response to the issue of WTO reform, I believe that the WTO is the backing of prosperity and the foundation of trade, and we should strengthen this. I am glad that the United States has agreed to the appointment of the new Director General, and now we have a new team. We should get the WTO to act, that's the most important thing. We mentioned the digital economy and e-commerce, and there is now a multilateral discussion on this issue, as well as a multilateral conference on trade and investment facilitation.
As for the digital economy and digital currency, there is no need for cash anywhere in China now, you just need to swipe your mobile phone. Can we have a global digital currency in the future? So we have a lot of new problems, new challenges, and the WTO is lagging behind. I am pleased that, for the first time, the Group of Seven has been personally represented by the supreme leader. Let's meet and talk at the G20, instead of having a short engagement across the ocean.
If anything needs to change, then we need more trade, we need a lot of trade and more investment. For example, if we don't have tourism, if people don't travel, they lose 10 percent of global GDP and they lose aviation. We need more real trade to sustain. China has provided billions of masks and ventilators to help countries around the world. At the same time, we also import a lot of agricultural products from the United States. David Ricardo's theory of comparative advantage never goes out of style. Everyone does their own thing and then communicates through trade so that we all benefit from it. Thank you.
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