Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- March is the time of the annual “two sessions” (the Second Session of the 14th National People’s Congress of China and the Second Session of the National Committee of the 14th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference). The Two Sessions have attracted a lot of international media attention and have become a window for the global community to observe China’s economic progress and political trends in the country. I would also like to share some impressions about China’s development.

Firstly, the report on government work announced by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China shows that in 2023, China’s GDP amounted to more than 126 trillion yuan (approximately US$18 trillion), an increase of 5.2%, the increase in the employed population in cities and towns amounted to 12.44 million people, while the urban unemployment rate did not exceed an average of 5.2%, and per capita disposable income increased by 6.1%. Grain production reached a record 695 million tons, and the production and sales of new energy vehicles exceeded 60% of the global total. At the same time, the layout of pilot free trade zones has been improved, and the share of exports in the international market has remained stable. The structure of the actual use of foreign capital continues to be optimized.

Behind these numbers is the strength and stability of China and its confident course towards a bright future.

Over the past year, despite numerous difficulties and problems, China has successfully achieved the main goals and objectives of economic and social development and received an excellent rating. In 2024, China will continue to adhere to the motto of "making progress in stability", taking into account current and long-term needs and opportunities, aiming for economic growth at about 5%, will also stimulate the economy with new high-quality productivity, expand high-quality development opportunities, which will bring more a powerful impetus for global economic recovery.

Secondly, and this is important to emphasize: if you look at China with prejudices, you will never come to the right conclusion. It is becoming clear to the whole world how groundless the theories of the “Chinese threat” and the “collapse of China” are. Understanding China’s economic development will enhance your understanding of the meaning of the following keywords.

1. Resilience and energy. As the world’s second largest economy, China contributes about 30 percent to global economic growth annually. All production categories of the UN Industrial Classification are represented in China, and the country has been ranked first in the world in terms of the scale of production of these products for 14 years in a row. China has significant institutional advantages, including mega-market demand, a full-cycle industrial system, and a large pool of highly skilled workers. The development of domestic driving forces continues to accumulate, the main trend of China’s economic recovery and improvement in the long term has not changed and will not change.

2. Innovation and high quality. China’s new industries, new models and new kinetic energy continue to grow, and new productive forces accelerate their development. In 2023, Chinese exports of electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products exceeded 1 trillion yuan (approximately US$140 billion), up nearly 30% from the year before. The digital economy is accelerating its development, the number of 5G users has exceeded 50%. At the same time, the country has excelled in the research and development of high-tech equipment: several major industrial innovations have reached international advanced levels, and continued breakthroughs in cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence and quantum technologies. Innovation’s ability to drive high-quality development continues to improve.

3. Cooperation and mutual benefit. China will continue to steadily expand high-level opening up to the outside world, improve the quality and volume of foreign trade, step up efforts to attract foreign investment, promote high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road, deepen multilateral and regional economic cooperation, promote the construction of an open world economy and ensure mutually beneficial results of cooperation for the benefit of the peoples of all countries. International investors prefer to increase their capital and expand production in China, and many multinational corporations believe that to maintain global competitiveness, they need to work hard in the Chinese market. The international community is generally optimistic about China’s economic and social development potential and expects the country to contribute more positive energy to the global economic recovery.

And thirdly, for Chinese-Uzbek relations, 2023 is a year of high dynamics in the development of practical cooperation between the two countries. Under the strategic leadership of the two heads of state, China-Uzbekistan cooperation in various fields has been filled with bright moments. China remains Uzbekistan’s largest trading partner and main source of investment, and bilateral trade exceeded US$14 billion in 2023, up more than 40 percent from the previous year. Important projects in the fields of transport, energy, infrastructure and the chemical industry are constantly advancing, cooperation in the field of green development, modern agriculture and the digital economy is growing, humanitarian exchanges and interregional cooperation are flourishing.

Earlier this year, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev successfully made a state visit to China. The two heads of state jointly said they would take bilateral relations to a new level of “all-weather” comprehensive strategic partnership in a new era. The prospects for promoting the construction of a Community of Shared Destiny between China and Uzbekistan will be even broader.

China and Uzbekistan are always traveling companions as they move towards modern development. The Chinese side is ready to cooperate with the Uzbek side to implement the important agreements between our leaders, continue to strengthen mutual political trust, firmly promote the joint construction of the BRI and the Development Strategy of New Uzbekistan, promote the improvement of cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, culture and others, as well as in improving people’s living standards and well-being, strive for common development and revival, and hand in hand open a better future for China-Uzbekistan relations!

Yu Jun,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Republic of Uzbekistan