Chinese President Xi Jinping while speaking virtually at the World Economic Forum (WEF) hit out against Western powers saying “confrontation does not solve problems, it only invites catastrophic consequences”.
The high profile Davos forum is being held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Our world today is far from the tranquil, rhetoric that stokes hatred and prejudice abound,” the Chinese president said in his address as he emphasised that his country was fighting a “tenacious battle” against the “once in a century pandemic” as he conceded that it is a “protracted” battle due to advent of new variants.
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China has been hit by large scale local flare-ups of coronavirus infections in several provinces with the Winter Olympics due to take place in Beijing next month. The country recently lockdown two cities amid the Omicron crisis even as authorities scamper to implement the “zero Covid” policy.
“Holding each other back or shifting blame will only cause needless delay,” Xi said while calling for vaccination distribution.
Xi said the global industrial supply chains have been disrupted amid rise in commodity prices even as his country was ready to “facilitate cross border trade and keep the industrial supply chain secure and smooth”.
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The Chinese president pitched for globalisation saying “countries are not riding separately in some 190 small boats, but rather are all in a giant ship on which our shared destiny hinges” as he touted the country’s economic growth rate last year.
“Small boats may not survive a storm, but a giant ship is strong enough to brave a storm,” Xi said at the Davos virtual forum.
(With inputs from Agencies)
