Chen Shaoqun
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi Jinping has constantly elevated the status and role of health diplomacy in China’s overall diplomacy, integrated health diplomacy into China’s all-dimensional, multi-tiered and wide-ranging opening-up in the new era, and made health diplomacy a booster for building a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind. This provides a basic and long-term guarantee for China to build a strong public health system and strengthen international health exchanges and cooperation.
“Health is not only an important aspect of China’s development but also a key area of China’s cooperation with other countries,” Xi said in a signed article published by Swiss newspaper Neue Zurcher Zeitung on January 14, 2017. This shows that medical and health care is a very important issue in Xi Jinping’s governance.
On November 15, 2012, Xi Jinping, who had just assumed the post of General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, took people’s desire for “higher-level medical and health services” as an important indicator of people’s yearning for a better life when meeting with Chinese and foreign journalists at the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee. On December 4, when presiding over the meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, he made “deepening the reform of the medical and health system” and developing health undertakings an important content of economic work in 2013. Every time he delivers a New Year message, he pays special attention to life, health, and basic security issues, and cares about the well-being of China and the world.
On October 18, 2017, he proposed the implementation of the Healthy China Strategy in his report to the 19th CPC National Congress, pointing out that people’s health is an important symbol of the prosperity of the nation and the country. This makes the development of health services an important indicator of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It can be seen that strengthening health diplomacy is an inevitable logic after China’s development has reached a new stage.
Xi stressed on many occasions that disease epidemics, especially major infectious diseases, are among many global challenges, and international cooperation is needed to solve the problem. In a meeting with WHO Director-General Margaret Chan at the Great Hall of the People on July 25, 2016, he said, “In today’s world, medical and health services are increasingly closely related to development in the political, economic, cultural and social fields, and their influence on international relations and foreign policy is on the rise.” This shows that Xi Jinping views the medical and health cause from the perspective of universal connection and movement development, which is the theoretical basis for his emphasis on medical diplomacy.
With the rise of modern summit diplomacy, the leading role of summit diplomacy in health diplomacy is increasingly prominent. At present, in the bilateral summit talks and meetings, the summit within the framework of international organizations composed of sovereign states, the collective meeting of regional leaders and other summit diplomatic activities, the exchange and cooperation in the field of medical and health care has attracted more and more attention. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, health diplomacy has become a beautiful landscape in China’s summit diplomacy, leading exchanges and cooperation in the medical and health field at various levels of sovereign states, national groups and even the global system has become a new development direction of China’s summit diplomacy.
First, medical and health cooperation between China and other countries has become an important topic in summit diplomacy. According to People’s Daily, from 2013 to 2017, 96 countries, including Russia, were involved in discussions between Xi Jinping and foreign heads of state to promote medical and health cooperation. The 96 countries account for 48.7% of the world’s 197 countries. Among them, 28 countries from Africa, 26 countries from Asia, 17 countries from Europe, 16 countries from America and 9 countries from Oceania (also known as south Pacific island countries), accounting for 51%, 56.5%, 37.8%, 45.7% and 56% of their respective continents.
Although Africa is still number one in terms of the number of countries, it is now number three in terms of proportion. Obviously, since the 18th CPC National Congress, health diplomacy has taken shape in an all-around way, focusing on the Asia-Pacific region, connecting Africa, and reaching Europe directly. The target countries of China’s health diplomacy have already covered the major developed countries, and the health diplomacy is no longer focused on foreign aid but has a diversified development trend. Among them, promoting the development of domestic medical and health undertakings through foreign exchanges and cooperation has become a new important point of medical diplomacy.
Second, strengthening medical and health cooperation has become the consensus of SCO member states. Since the communist party of China (18 to cooperation and exchanges in the field of medical and health care to enrich the connotation of the Shanghai cooperation organization, expand the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states cooperation with observer states and dialogue partners, customers, promote the development of western China, promote the construction of “area” docking with the development of the Shanghai cooperation organization, as an important content of China towards the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
At every SCO Heads of State Council meeting, President Xi stressed the need to strengthen cooperation in the field of medical and health care, and his suggestions were often unanimously endorsed by the participating heads of state. Such as, on September 13, 2013, in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on 13th meeting heads of the state council, said the new areas of cooperation in the field of traditional medicine are the parties, China is willing to work with the member states of the construction of medical institutions of traditional Chinese medicine, make full use of traditional medicine resources for members of the health of the people “.
On June 24, 2016, Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) held in Tashkent heads of state council 16th conference, said China is ready to work with countries to promote exchanges and cooperation in the fields of youth, health, environmental protection, “China plans to use the medical conditions of Xinjiang and location advantages, the international medical service center for neighboring countries, Deepen cooperation and exchanges with other countries in the field of health.”
Thirdly, the status and role of BRICS countries in global health governance have been greatly enhanced. To deepen health exchanges and cooperation between the BRICS countries as the basis, to strengthen the BRICS countries in the world health organization and the role of the United Nations agencies, through before the G20 summit in the BRICS leaders’ meeting, through the “BRICS +” leaders dialogue, enhance the position and role of the BRICS countries in global health governance, It is one of China’s important considerations in BRICS diplomacy since the 18th CPC National Congress.
Strengthening medical and health cooperation is also an important topic of the BRICS summit. Since 2014, the BRICS leaders’ meeting is proposed to continue to strengthen international cooperation, support the United Nations, the world health organization jointly cope with the Ebola outbreak, in 2015 the BRICS leaders meeting in Russia’s seventh UFA published the declaration of UFA and highly appreciates Chinese and international health and humanitarian workers contribution in the fight against Ebola. On September 4, 2017, President Xi Jinping presided over the ninth BRICS Summit. Articles 13 and 60 of the BRICS Xiamen Declaration issued at the summit both refer to “health care” and health cooperation, while article 64 is devoted to strengthening the role of BRICS countries in global health governance.
Finally, medical and health cooperation with Pacific Island countries has been strengthened. Pacific Island countries are important fulcrum countries in the building of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Strengthening exchanges and cooperation with them is an objective requirement of the Belt and Road Initiative. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, medical and health exchanges and cooperation between China and Pacific Island countries have become an important part of the strategic partnership of mutual respect and common development between China and the eight countries that have established diplomatic relations with them. In November 2014, Xi Jinping visited the Pacific island countries. It was the first time for China’s top leader to visit the Pacific island countries and the first time for leaders of China and Pacific Island countries to meet.
On November 22, China held a group meeting with leaders of Pacific Island countries in Nadi, expressing China’s willingness to continue sending medical teams to relevant island countries. Later, he will meet with leaders of some Pacific Island countries respectively and exchange views with them on strengthening cooperation in medical and health care. In recent years, China has sent a large number of medical teams to the Pacific Island countries, providing them with a variety of medicines and assisting in the prevention and treatment of malaria and other diseases. In 2018, the Chinese hospital ship “Peace Ark” visited Papua New Guinea and Tonga and provided humanitarian services.
The writer is Research Assistant of Shandong China Diplomatic Foreign Heritage Research Base, Qufu Normal University,China
*Views expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not represent the position of this magazine
