00:00Well, let's talk now to Jorge Haini, the former Chilean government minister, who is also the country's ambassador to China.
00:07Welcome back to the program. Great to see you.
00:10How important is it, do you think, Beijing putting the green economy at the center of this five-year plan, both for China and the rest of the world?
00:18I think it is absolutely central at a time when climate change denialism is raising its ugly head in some countries in the West.
00:28It seems to me that China's doubling down on its commitment to fight climate change and to promote a green economy is absolutely central.
00:37This, of course, is very much in line with President Xi's commitment to what he calls an ecological civilization, which seems to me frames the issue very, very adequately.
00:48You already mentioned earlier the significant progress that China has made both in solar and in wind energy, where it leads in the world, both in terms of technological progress and in terms of quantity, in terms of the use of it.
01:04And also, of course, in electric vehicles, Chinese electric vehicles are making a real dent in world markets and making such a significant difference in that regard.
01:17So China's development strategy has always had global consequences, whether it's trade, investment or climate.
01:23What should the world be looking out for here?
01:26Well, it seems to me that, again, you know, in this very uncertain environment in which we find ourselves, in which, you know, a number of countries are putting up all sorts of tariffs and erecting protectionist barriers.
01:41The fact that China keeps its commitment to free trade, to an open economy, is extremely important for, particularly for countries in the developing world, but also elsewhere, their access to the Chinese market is absolutely central.
01:56In that sense, both Chinese growth and its commitment to free trade is very important for, you know, development goals around the rest of the world.
02:06So you were an ambassador to China.
02:09How do you see this plenum shaping China's diplomatic strategy, especially before possible talks between President Xi and President Trump at AIPAC?
02:18Yes. As I mentioned before, we are living in a very uncertain moment.
02:25The world is troubled by enormous challenges of all kinds, wars, the pandemic that we had earlier, mass migrations and so on.
02:35And in this very uncertain world, what China's diplomatic posture stands for is for a commitment to stability, continuity, predictability in diplomacy.
02:50Those are very significant values.
02:53Countries want to know where they stand in relation to each other.
02:57That is something that China has emphasized.
03:00It is something that is very much valued by other countries around the world.
03:04So what key signals or perhaps policy shifts will you be looking out for in this meeting and the five-year plan proposals?
03:14Well, I will say this.
03:16For the reasons that I mentioned before, China is obviously particularly concerned about its security in this very uncertain environment.
03:24And it will continue to emphasize technological progress, innovation, to make sure that its industry is up to date and continues to do the sort of things it needs to promote economic growth and progress.
03:40Now, that said, it seems to me it is also important and the rest of the world we will be looking at, at the degree to which the plenum will address the issue of promoting domestic demand and domestic consumption.
03:54It seems to me China cannot rely solely on its export juggernaut that is doing very well, but it must also emphasize a greater domestic demand.
04:05And to see whether something will come out of that is something the rest of the world will be looking at.
04:11Jorge, always a pleasure to talk to you.
04:13Thank you for coming on the program.
04:14That's Jorge Haini, the Chilean former ambassador to China.
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