Sustainable Development of Transport in China
1. Contributing to Belt and Road Cooperation
The Belt and Road Initiative embodies great dreams. Following the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, China joins hands with other countries to accelerate cooperation in infrastructure connectivity and build a high-quality development path that is inclusive and beneficial to all－a road of peace, cooperation and prosperity.
Promoting connectivity of transport infrastructure. China recognizes the importance of transport in promoting global connectivity and shared prosperity, and thus strengthens win-win cooperation with other countries in transport connectivity. Steady progress has been achieved in cooperation on the Pakistan Main Line 1(ML-1) upgrading project, the China-Nepal Cross-border Railway, the China-Laos Railway, the China-Thailand Railway, and the Jakarta-Bandung High-speed Rail. With the joint efforts of Chinese enterprises and their international partners, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, and the Orange Line metro train project in Lahore, Pakistan, have been completed. More than 31,000 China Railway Express Trains have made trans-continental voyages to Europe, reaching 92 cities in 21 European countries.
Cooperation between China and relevant countries has brought a number of road and bridge projects to completion, including the Havelian-Thakot section of the Karakoram Highway and the Sukkur-Multan section of the Peshawar-Karachi Motorway, the Kunming-Bangkok Expressway, the Heihe-Blagoveshchensk Highway Bridge, the Tongjiang-Nizhneleninskoye Railway Bridge and other road and bridge projects.
China has participated in the construction and operation of the Port of Piraeus in Greece, the Port of Colombo in Sri Lanka, the Gwadar Port in Pakistan and other overseas ports. With the active participation and joint efforts of the countries concerned, a connectivity framework consisting of six corridors, six routes and multiple countries and ports has taken shape.
A comprehensive, multilevel infrastructure network with railways, highways, shipping and aviation at its core is forming rapidly. As a result, the costs of cross-regional trade and goods movement have been gradually reduced, facilitating the orderly flow and optimal allocation of resources and other production factors across regions.
Facilitating international transport. China actively promotes the coordination of policies, rules and standards among countries so as to provide institutional support for connectivity. Under the framework of Belt and Road cooperation, it has signed 22 agreements on international road transport with 19 countries, reached bilateral agreements with Belgium, the UAE, and France on mutual recognition and exchange of motor vehicle driving licenses, and concluded 70 bilateral or regional shipping agreements with 66 countries and regions, with its shipping services covering all coastal countries along the Belt and Road.
China has also signed agreements with 26 countries and regions on unilateral or mutual recognition of seafarer's certificate of competency, and signed a memorandum of understanding on electronic certificates with Singapore to facilitate customs clearance of ships and the application of electronic certificates in the global shipping industry. An international railway cooperation mechanism has been established for China Railway Express to Europe, and China has signed postal cooperation agreements with 22 countries, realizing regular outbound mail traffic of China Railway Express.
China has signed bilateral intergovernmental agreements on air transport with 100 countries. By the end of 2019, Chinese and foreign airlines were operating air routes in China reaching 54 countries, with 6,846 round-trip flights every week. China has signed regional air transport agreements with ASEAN and the European Union.
China has established a cooperation mechanism for maritime search and rescue with Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Russia, and signed a departmental memorandum of understanding on maritime search and rescue with the National Search and Rescue Agency of Indonesia.
Thanks to these measures, China can enjoy closer cooperation, more convenient exchanges, and more shared interests with other countries along the Belt and Road.
2. Promoting Reform of Global Transport Governance
Currently, global transport governance faces a series of new challenges. To better facilitate and support global development, it urgently needs reform and innovation. China firmly supports multilateralism, actively promotes the evolution of the global transport governance system, and contributes China's vision and approach to global transport governance.
Participating in global transport governance. As a major country that shoulders its international responsibilities and obligations, China has become a party to nearly 120 multilateral agreements on transport; it has taken an active part in the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Organisation for Cooperation between Railways (OSJD), the International Union of Railways (UIC), the World Road Association (PIARC), the International Transport Forum (ITF), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and other international organizations. China has been reelected as a Category (a) Council member of the IMO and member of the councils of the UPU. It has hosted the World Transport Convention and other international conferences.
China is committed to undertaking all transport-related actions under the framework of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It works with other developing countries to promote reform of global governance for sustainable transport, with the goal of creating a favorable international environment for developing countries.
Contributing to global climate governance. China attaches great importance to tackling climate change, actively undertakes international responsibilities and obligations that are commensurate with its stage of development and national conditions, and enforces a national strategy to proactively respond to climate change. It has played a leading role in formulating and implementing IMO's initial strategy on the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships, and worked hard to safeguard the interests of developing countries during the formulation and implementation of the market-based measure－Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation. China strives for the establishment of a fair and rational global climate governance system directed towards cooperation and win-win results, with the goal of contributing to global eco-environmental progress and sustainable development.
3. Strengthening International Exchanges and Cooperation
In the spirit of equality and mutually beneficial cooperation, China seeks closer and broader cooperation with other countries on transport, to facilitate an open world economy.
Broadening the global network of partnerships. Through mechanisms such as the Transport Cooperation Sub-Committee of the Committee for Regular Meetings between Chinese and Russian Heads of Government, the China-US Transportation Forum, and the China-CEEC Transport Ministers' Meeting, China furthers cooperation in sustainable development of transport and plays a constructive role in building a new model of international relations.
Adhering to the principles of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit, and inclusiveness in its relations with its neighbors, China strengthens its cooperation with neighboring countries in transport. The following mechanisms have been established: the China-Japan-Korea Ministerial Conference on Transport and Logistics, the Meeting of SCO Ministers of Transport, the ASEAN and China Transport Ministers Meeting, the Joint Committee on Coordination of Commercial Navigation on Lancang-Mekong River among China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand, mechanisms for the use and management of China-Russia and China-DPRK trans-boundary waterways, the Asia-Pacific Heads of Maritime Safety Agencies (APHoMSA) forum, and the China-ASEAN Maritime Consultation Mechanism. China has participated in transport cooperation under the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) and other frameworks, contributing substantially to regional economic development.
Guided by the principle of pursuing the greater good and shared interests, China actively engages in international programs on enhancing maritime capability and technological cooperation, and provides support and aid for other developing countries in infrastructure construction, planning and capacity building. Through broad and in-depth exchanges and cooperation, China has broken new ground in opening up featuring mutually beneficial market-based cooperation, experience-sharing and mutual learning.
Engaging in international cooperation in fighting COVID-19. The coronavirus is a common foe of all of humanity. China strengthens transport cooperation in COVID-19 prevention and control with other countries and promotes a global community of health for all. At China's initiative, the IMO recommended and forwarded a number of protocols from China to its 174 member states and relevant international organizations, including Guidelines for COVID-19 Prevention and Control for Seafarers on Board Vessels and Guidelines for COVID-19 Prevention and Control for Ports and Their Frontline Staff. The Civil Aviation Administration of China shared with its counterparts in more than 40 countries Preventing Spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Guideline for Airlines and Preventing Spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Guideline for Airports. Via the UPU, China Post shared the Handbook for New Coronavirus Prevention and Control with 192 member states of the union.
China attended the Special Session of the Eighth China-Japan-Korea Ministerial Conference on Transport and Logistics, the China-ASEAN Transport Ministers' Special Meeting on COVID-19, and the 19th China-ASEAN Transport Ministers' Meeting via video links, and joint statements were issued after the events.
China has established domestic fast channels for the transport of materials to assist in the battle against COVID-19, and set up special task forces for international logistics. Through multimodal methods such as multi-stop chartered flights, commercial flights, sea-land multimodal freight and China Railway Express to Europe, it provides full support for transporting aid materials. So far, 294 batches of supplies have been provided to 150 countries and 7 international organizations, and 35 teams totaling 262 medical experts have been dispatched to aid 33 countries.
