On November 28, 2022, Ambassador Dr. Ezzat Saad participated in the “China’s New Development and World’s New Opportunities – The First Eyes on China and Ears to the World Forum” organized by the China Center for Contemporary Global Studies (IDCPC) and the Secretariat of the Silk Road Think Tanks Association (SRTA), with a paper entitled “The Outcomes of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China on China and the World”, which closing was on October 22, 2022. Ambassador Saad expressed his deep gratitude and appreciation to the organizers, for the invitation to participate in this important event, on behalf of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs.

Ambassador Saad indicated that there is no doubt that China plays an important role in the international order, given its position as the second largest global economic power and the largest trading country in the world. It was only normal that the whole world watched with great interest the work of the CPC’s 20th National Congress, and its outcomes and repercussions locally, regionally and globally. In this context, he referred to a number of geopolitical and geo-economic messages conveyed by the 20th Congress to the world, represented in China’s determination to strengthen its global position as a responsible power, along with other emerging markets, since these markets contributed, according to the International Monetary Fund, with more than 80% of the new global economic growth since the financial crisis in 2008, which contributed strongly to the alleviation of global poverty. This requires that China, in addition to these markets, has the right to play a much larger role in global economic and political governance in a comprehensive, responsible and effective manner.

In this context, Chinese President Xi Jinping affirmed that China fulfills its responsibilities as a major global power within the framework of the principles of governance, which the Chinese President frequently affirms on various occasions. In his report to the 20th Congress, Jinping stressed China’s firm rejection of all forms of hegemony and policies based on it, its opposition to the Cold War mentality and interference in the internal affairs of other countries, its rejection of double standards, and its firm defense of pluralism in international political and economic relations. Jinping also stressed that China avoids the path of unfair competition, shuns enmity and conflict, and forges ahead with a comprehensive and positive vision for the future that measures China’s success by its achievements, rather than belittling or hindering its capabilities and initiatives. On the eve of the Congress, during a meeting with foreign and local press, President Jinping pledged to work with the peoples of all other countries to promote common human values such as peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom; to protect world peace and advance its development.

Besides, the proceedings of the Congress affirmed China’s steadfast position on the Taiwan region, and sent a firm message to countries that hope to change their stance on the “One China” principle as well as the current ruling authorities in the Taiwan region, and the forces that seek to empower the so-called “Taiwan independence.” Amendments to the Constitution of the Communist Party of China also emphasized, for the first time, “resolutely oppose and curb Taiwan independence”, preventing any attempt by the territory of Taiwan to secede from the motherland.

This is while taking into account what Jinping stressed that China “will continue to strive for peaceful reunification with the greatest sincerity and the utmost effort.” Perhaps this balanced position enhances the credibility of the well-known position of the Chinese leadership towards Taiwan, in light of China’s maintenance of peace for decades. This position is also an apparent response to the misguided assumptions of many U.S. commentators, writers, and even some U.S. officials, who have described the war in Ukraine as a “warm-up” for a more significant and longer-term conflict with China. They maintained that war with China over Taiwan was inevitable, and others even set a deadline for China to use force to retake Taiwan within the next two to five years. The conclusion here is that China’s modernization of its military capabilities as a superpower is a natural matter, and does not in any way mean the use of force or setting a timetable for it. President Jinping’s speech to the 20th Congress was clear and frank regarding this issue.

In addition, the Congress affirmed China’s continued openness to the outside world, given that the reform and opening up of the economy by the Chinese leadership has been crucial to the tremendous economic success witnessed over the past four decades, including the last decade, which saw charting a new path for growth and ending poverty in China, which also provided a new field for success, which has been considered as a constructive model for emerging markets and developing countries to learn and build, within their local context.

The outcomes of the 20th Congress confirmed Beijing’s determination to continue reform and opening up, and its pursuit of high-quality development. President Jinping asserted the necessity of “fully and comprehensively implementing new development thinking, adhering to the reform trend of the communist market economy, and high-level opening up to the outside world, which is characterized by mutually reinforcing domestic and international economic cycles,” adding that his country cannot develop without the world, and that the world also needs China.

Moreover, the geopolitical and geo-economic messages that the CPC’s 20th National Congress was keen to send to the world, have highlighted many issues that will have a direct impact on shaping the map of the next stage, politically and economically, on the international arena. The main scene of the 20th Congress reflected the fact that the new China cannot be bypassed when re-reading the geostrategic calculations in the light of what the People’s Republic of China has achieved as an inspiring economic, social, political and military model for many countries.