Xi Mounts Fresh Defense of Globalization in Contrast to Trump

by Dramelin 1:00 AM 0 comments

Says economies need to be more open in order to benefit all Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a robust defense of globalization in a speech to Asian business leaders on Friday, calling on nations to keep their economies open for shared prosperity.
Speaking moments after U.
President Donald Trump told the same audience the U.
would not seek multilateral trade deals and wanted to make the system fairer for Americans, Xi painted a picture of a global order that would bring collective benefits.
“The concept of globalization should pay more attention to openness and tolerance, while the direction should focus on balance,” Xi told executives at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Danang, Vietnam.
China will “continue to build an open economy and work hard to achieve mutual benefits,” he added.
“Opening up will bring progress and those who close down will inevitably lag behind.
” The remarks come after Xi pledged during a state visit to China by Trump to further open the Chinese economy to foreign investors.
Following the visit, China announced a plan to open its financial sector by removing ownership limits on its banks and asset-management companies.
The remarks signal a continuation of Xi’s drive to cast himself as a champion of global free trade as the Trump administration challenges China’s barriers to access for foreign companies.
Earlier this year, Xi launched his pushback against protectionism in a speech to billionaires and government officials gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Trump Speech In his earlier address to the summit, Trump questioned the value of past U.
trade practices, vowing not to “let the United States be taken advantage of any more.
” He also promised to do more to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, warning against “nuclear blackmail.
” Xi pledged to continue opening the Chinese economy to foreign players and to undertake structural reforms, echoing remarks he delivered Beijing on Thursday.
"In the next fifteen years, China wants to set up a new platform for the cooperation of all parties in entering the Chinese market," Xi said.
Xi called on the region to make "continuous progress" towards what would be known as the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific and to quickly complete negotiations on a 16-nation Asia trade pact known as the RCEP.
During Trump’s visit to Beijing on Thursday, Xi didn’t respond directly to Trump’s charges of unfair trade practices, but said he was committed to opening up China’s economy.
He cited new deals with U.
companies as “great examples” of the potential “win-win nature” of ties.