Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin on May 14, 2024
Presided over the regular press conference
Xinhua News Agency: China has just announced that President Putin will pay a state visit to China. What is China's expectation for President Putin's visit?
Wang Wenbin: At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay his first state visit to China on May 16-17. During the visit, President Xi Jinping and President Putin will exchange views on bilateral relations, cooperation in various fields, and international and regional issues of common concern in the context of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia. We will keep you informed of the details of the visit in a timely manner.
TV Asahi: According to some reports, the first meeting of the China-US Intergovernmental Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence was held in Geneva, Switzerland, today in Switzerland.
Wang Wenbin: In order to implement the consensus reached at the China-US summit in San Francisco, the two sides agreed that China and the United States will hold the first meeting of the China-US Intergovernmental Dialogue on AI in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 14 local time, to exchange views on AI technology risks, global governance, and other issues of concern to each other.
CRI: According to reports, the press conference on the achievements and future prospects of the Jakarta-Djibouti Railway and the turnkey ceremony were held in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, a few days ago.
Wang Wenbin: The Jakarta-Djibouti Railway is the first standard gauge transnational electrified railway in East Africa, and it is also a flagship project of China's Belt and Road cooperation with Ethiopia and Djibouti. Today, we have prepared a short information video for you to introduce the relevant cooperation of this project.
Since its completion, the Jakarta-Djibouti railway has provided more than 55,000 jobs for the local people, greatly promoting the level of connectivity between the two countries, and injecting strong impetus into the economic and social development of Ethiopia and Djibouti.
Chinese often say: Teach people to fish, but also teach people to fish. The Ajibouti-Djibouti Railway is a prime example of this. In the past six years, China has not only cooperated with Ethiopia and Djibouti to build a modern railway, but also completed training and certification for more than 2,800 local employees in both countries, helping the local team to build a competent local team. The six-year achievements and future prospects of the Ajibouti-Djibouti Railway and the turnkey ceremony marked the successful conclusion of the operation and maintenance services participated by the Chinese team, and also meant that the African team took over the railway operation in an all-round way, which became a new starting point for the operation and development of the Ajibouti-Djibouti Railway. China will continue to cooperate and cooperate with the two countries to build the Jakarta-Djibouti Railway into a prosperous road for win-win cooperation, jointly promote the high-quality development of the China-Africa Belt and Road Initiative, and contribute to the common development of China and Africa.
AFP: According to reports, the US and Taiwanese navies held joint military exercises in the Pacific last month. Can you confirm this?
Wang Wenbin: I have noticed reports of "unexpected encounters" between US and Taiwan vessels. China's position on opposing US-Taiwan military ties is consistent and clear. We urge the US side to earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiqués, and stop the erroneous act of military collusion between the US and Taiwan. We also tell the DPP authorities that "seeking independence by force" and "resisting reunification by force" are both dead ends and doomed to failure, and there will be no surprise at this point.
NHK: Yuan Keqin, a former professor at Hokkaido University of Education, was detained by the Chinese government on suspicion of espionage when he returned to China in May 2019. Can the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs tell me about him?
Wang Wenbin: You can ask the competent authorities for details. What I can tell you here is that China is a country governed by the rule of law and handles relevant cases in accordance with the law.
CCTV: In a recent interview with US media, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen once again talked about China's so-called "overcapacity" in the field of new energy such as electric vehicles. In response to the moderator's questioning, Yellen said, "The United States will be very clear about investment subsidies in strategic areas, but we don't want China to provide large subsidies to companies with serious overcapacity." Do you have any comment?
Wang Wenbin: We have noted relevant reports. According to the logic of the United States, subsidies by the United States are "vital industrial investment", and subsidies by other countries are "worrying unfair competition"; The United States exports products with comparative advantages to the world as "free trade," and other countries export products with comparative advantages to the world as "overcapacity." In Chinese terms, this means "only the state officials are allowed to set fires, and the people are not allowed to light lamps". In American parlance, it is "Do as I say, not as I do." In the final analysis, the United States is suppressing the advanced industries of other countries under the banner of "overcapacity," engaging in protectionism under the pretext of "fair competition," and trampling on the principles of the market economy and international economic and trade rules.
I would like to reiterate that the rapid development of China's new energy industry, including electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products, is based on continuous technological innovation, perfect production and supply chain system and full market competition. On the contrary, in recent years, the US has signed the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, directly intervening in the allocation of market resources through hundreds of billions of dollars in direct and indirect subsidies. The United States is the "big player" of industrial subsidies.
Subsidies cannot make up for industrial competitiveness, and protection cannot protect truly strong enterprises. The rapid development of China's new energy industry is in line with the needs of the world economy to achieve green transformation, which is beneficial to China, the United States and the world. We advise the US side to abandon the hypocrisy and double standards of inconsistent minds, and not to repeat the mistakes of protectionism.
Bloomberg: According to reports, the UK government has arrested "agents" from Hong Kong, accusing them of spies. Can you tell us more about that?
Wang Wenbin: China is gravely concerned about the arrest and prosecution of Chinese citizens, and strongly urges the UK to earnestly protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens in the UK. For some time now, the British side has been hyping up the so-called "Chinese espionage case" and "Chinese cyber attack incident", and this series of accusations is purely groundless, malicious slander, and unacceptable. China firmly opposes such despicable acts of political manipulation in the name of justice and national security.
AFP: According to reports, US President Joe Biden will announce tariffs on Chinese products on Tuesday. These tariffs target Chinese electric vehicles, medical supplies, solar products. What is China's response to this?
Wang Wenbin: You can ask the competent authorities for details. We would like to tell you that China has always opposed the unilateral imposition of tariffs in violation of WTO rules and will take all necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.
AFP: The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced yesterday that it will hold a special meeting this week to discuss the issue of 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for prescription heart drugs. If the Chinese side is asked to provide information before the meeting, will the Chinese side cooperate?
Wang Wenbin: Please ask the Chinese authorities for specific questions. Previously, we have clarified China's position on the relevant incidents.
It should be pointed out that some foreign institutions and media have recently ignored China's firm attitude of resolutely opposing doping in sports and China's achievements in anti-doping undertakings, and have been seriously biased against China's anti-doping work, publishing reports and remarks that clearly violate basic facts, seriously infringing on athletes' privacy, and attempting to attack the World Anti-Doping Agency and China and shake the current effective global anti-doping system by manipulating the media, misleading the public, and transmitting misinformation. China strongly condemns this.
China actively promotes the fight against doping and supports WADA in implementing independent, fair, consistent and effective governance on a global scale.