Dear Friends,

Over the year, China has met challenges head-on and advanced its diplomatic agenda with greater resolve. Under the personal guidance of President Xi Jinping and the effective planning of the CPC Central Committee, China's head-of-state diplomacy has played a guiding role. Our diplomatic work has focused on ensuring the success of the 20th CPC National Congress as our top priority and on building a community with a shared future for mankind as our vision. We have adapted to changes, addressed adversities and broken new ground. We have conducted major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in an all-round way, making new contribution to upholding world peace and promoting common development.

First, our head-of-state diplomacy has been immensely successful with one significant event after another and has set the pace for China's overall diplomatic work. This can be highlighted as one home-ground event, two major initiatives, and three important visits.

The home-ground event is the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. With the concerted efforts of China and the international community, the Games were a resounding success. The opening ceremony brought together 31 heads of state, government, and international organizations from five continents who joined us in the celebration of the Games. The international community has experienced a China that is more confident, striving, open and inclusive. The Beijing rendezvous on ice and snow marked a new milestone in the endeavor of the peoples across the world to embrace new hopes and pursue a shared future together.

The two major initiatives are the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Global Security Initiative (GSI). In April this year, President Xi Jinping unveiled the GSI at the Boao Forum for Asia, offering a Chinese proposal for addressing global security challenges and achieving durable peace and security in the world. The international community responded to the GSI favorably. In a matter of six months, over 70 countries have expressed endorsement and support of the initiative.

As the chair of the first High-level Dialogue on Global Development held in June on the margins of a BRICS Summit, President Xi Jinping announced 32 major measures China would take to implement the GDI; an open-ended pool of GDI projects and the Global Development Promotion Center were created. To date, more than 100 countries and a number of international organizations, including the United Nations, have committed support to the GDI; close to 70 countries have joined the Group of Friends of the GDI.

The three major visits refer to those made by President Xi Jinping from September to December, the first of its kind since the COVID-19 outbreak. They include the Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Samarkand, the G20 Summit in Bali and the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Bangkok, and the first China-Arab States Summit and the China-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit in Riyadh.

In the period before and after the 20th CPC National Congress, President Xi Jinping attended five multilateral summits and held bilateral meetings with leaders of more than 40 countries, creating three peaks for head-of-state diplomacy this year and making a good start to the work of the CPC's new collective central leadership in China's foreign affairs.

Second, we have continued to reject bloc confrontation and zero-sum competition, and maintained strategic stability in relations with other major countries. Major countries need to lead by example?in making?the world a better place. How they engage one another bears on the future of humanity.?Taking on?its responsibilities for the world and for history, China?has worked relentlessly for a major-country relationship that features peaceful coexistence, overall stability and balanced development.

We have firmly rejected?the United States'?erroneous?China policy?and have been exploring?the right way for the two countries to get along?with each other. As the United States has stubbornly continued to see?China as its primary competitor?and engage?in blatant?blockade, suppression and provocation?against China, China-US relations?were plunged?into serious difficulties. In response, China has taken resolute actions to counter such power politics and bullying while pointing the right way forward?through open and candid communication.

President Xi?Jinping?has had?two phone calls with President Joe Biden at the request of the latter. The two presidents also had a face-to-face?meeting?in Bali, the first of its kind in three years. President Xi Jinping analyzed the essence of China-US relations and?drew China's bottom line and red line. He also?stressed the need to abandon the zero-sum mentality where one's gain and rise mean the other's loss and decline, to define China-US interactions by dialogue and win-win cooperation, not confrontation and zero-sum competition, and to bring China-US relations back on?the right track of healthy and stable development?under the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation. The candid and in-depth communication between the two presidents was constructive and strategic. It is clear from these talks that the two leaders?both?attach?importance to the global significance of China-US relations, and emphasize the importance of exploring and establishing the guiding principles of China-US relations. They both hope the bilateral ties will stop sliding and return to stability as quickly as possible, and both agree to effectively manage differences and advance practical?cooperation. President Biden reaffirmed his "five-noes"?statement, and further indicated that?the US does not support "two Chinas"?or "one China, one Taiwan", does not seek to use the Taiwan question as a tool to contain China, and has no intention to seek "decoupling"?from China, to halt China's economic development or to contain China.

What has happened proves?time and again that China and the United States?cannot decouple?or sever supply chains. Under new circumstances, the common interests between China and the United States?have increased, not decreased. No conflict, no confrontation and peaceful coexistence are in the common interests?of both countries; deepening economic integration and benefiting more from each other's development are also in the common interests?of both; and boosting the global economy, tackling climate change, and resolving regional hot-spot issues remain?the common interests. Playing up competition does all harm and no good, and seeking cooperation is a necessity not a choice.?China?urges?the US side to honor its commitments, turn?President Biden's positive statements into action, stop containing and suppressing China, stop interfering in China's internal affairs, stop undermining China's sovereignty, security and development interests, and cultivate a favorable atmosphere for communication and cooperation between the two sides. We call on the US side to change its course, establish an objective and sensible perception of China, follow a positive and pragmatic China policy, and work with us to put in place the pillars and a solid foundation for the healthy and stable growth of China-US relations.

We have deepened good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation with Russia, and made China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination more mature and resilient. President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin met in Beijing for a "rendezvous with Winter Olympics", and held an important meeting in Samarkand, providing strategic guidance for China-Russia relations to move ahead under new circumstances. Over the past year, China and Russia have firmly supported each other in upholding respective core interests, and our political and strategic mutual trust has been further consolidated. Our bilateral trade is approaching the US$200 billion target at a faster pace. Major investment projects are well underway. The scale of local currency settlement further expands. The Heihe highway bridge and Tongjiang railway bridge are open to traffic. Landmark progress has been secured in cross-border connectivity, and both countries have a stronger drive to develop mutually beneficial cooperation. As some country is seeking to revive the Cold War mentality and fabricating the false narrative of democracy versus authoritarianism, China and Russia have stood in solidarity with other countries to steadfastly push for multipolarity and greater democracy in international relations, and steadfastly oppose hegemony and reject a new Cold War. The China-Russia relationship, which is based on non-alliance, non-confrontation and non-targeting of any third party, remains rock-solid. Such relationship is free from interference or any attempt to sow discord between the two countries, and is immune from changes in the international environment.

We have continued to pursue friendship and cooperation with Europe, and stay committed to the healthy development of China-Europe relations.?China-Europe cooperation bears on the stability of the global landscape and the prosperity of the Eurasian continent. Friendship is the keynote of China's Europe policy, and cooperation its overarching goal. We are happy to see stronger European strategic autonomy. We support European integration. And we expect the EU to play a greater role in international affairs. Over the past year, President Xi Jinping had over 20 phone calls and meetings with European leaders, and received German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President of the European Council Charles Michel in China. Two-way trade and investment between China and Europe has bucked the trend and continued to grow. A host of major projects have been completed successively. These are full evidence that China and Europe are each other's partners, not rivals, and we are each other's opportunities, not threats. China and Europe are working together on the global stage to practice true multilateralism, and meet global challenges such as climate change and biodiversity. Such cooperation is of important significance to the world, and offers a source of inspiration to humanity. On the basis of mutual respect and equality, we will work continuously with the European side to properly handle differences and disagreements, strengthen strategic communication and results-oriented cooperation, and jointly act as an anchor of stability for the Eurasian continent and serve as a new powerhouse of development and prosperity.