President urges bigger role for developing nations

President Xi Jinping on Friday called on the international community to increase the representation and voice of emerging markets and developing countries in global economic governance in order to make global development more balanced, coordinated and inclusive.

He made the remark when addressing the plenary session of the 25th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in Russia via videoconference.

Xi said that at a time when the international community is so keen about achieving more equitable, sustainable and secure development, "we should seize opportunities, meet challenges head-on, and work on the implementation of the Global Development Initiative to build a shared future of peace and prosperity".

To foster an enabling environment for development, it is important to follow true multilateralism, respect and support all countries' pursuit of development paths suited to their national conditions, and build an open world economy, he said.

Xi also underlined the importance of forging greater synergy for development and closing the development gap. In this regard, it is important to enhance North-South and South-South cooperation, pool cooperation resources, platforms and networks of development partnerships, and scale up development assistance, Xi said.

The president noted that attempts at decoupling, supply disruption, unilateral sanctions and maximum pressure should be rejected and trade barriers should be removed in order to advance economic globalization.

Meanwhile, efforts should be made to strengthen the "soft connectivity" of development policies and international rules and standards, keep global industrial and supply chains stable, and tackle the worsening food and energy crises in order to revive the world economy, he said.

In order to pursue innovation-driven development, Xi said that it is important to break down barriers to the flow of innovation factors, deepen exchanges and cooperation on innovation and ensure that the fruits of innovation are shared by all.

Xi also stressed that the fundamentals of the Chinese economy－its strong resilience, enormous potential and long-term sustainability－remain unchanged.

"We have full confidence in China's economic development," he said.

He said that China will continue to promote high-quality development, expand high-standard opening-up with firm resolve, and pursue highquality Belt and Road cooperation.

China stands ready to work with Russia and all other countries to explore development prospects, share growth opportunities, and make new contributions to deepening global development cooperation and building a community with a shared future for mankind, Xi said.

The plenary session was also attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, among others.