Remarks by Ambassador Qin Gang at the Presentation of Plaque of Recognition by Massport and International Longshoremen’s Association
2022/01/21 21:51

Mr. Hartigan,

Dr. Li,

Mr. Meyran,

Mr. O’Donnell,

I wish to welcome all of you to the Chinese Embassy and your visit brings fresh air to Washington DC. Thank you, Mr. Meyran, for presenting to me the plaque of recognition and for your warm remarks. I’m very touched by your words. Thank you, Mr. O’Donnell, for this jacket with the ILA (International Longshoremen’s Association)’s logo. It reminds me of the longshoremen at my hometown Tianjin, also a port city, who are as proud, sincere and hard-working as you. I love workers. I have great passion for the working class, who work hard to support their families and their country.

Th honor you present to me belongs to Chinese companies. It is also shared by all those devoted to the cooperation between COSCO Shipping and the Port of Boston. This year marks the 20th anniversary for COSCO Shipping to open a direct vessel service to Boston. 20 years ago, the previous shipper closed its lines to the port. The historical Port of Boston was put on the verge of closure, and many workers faced job losses. With the joint efforts of various parties in Massachusetts and Boston, in particular Mr. Hartigan and Dr. Li, COSCO Shipping opened direct shipping line to Boston, and a new journey has been started in China-US business cooperation.  

Now, COSCO Shipping has become the Port of Boston’s biggest client, taking up over half of its market share. Their cooperation has not only saved 9,000 jobs in the region’s shipping industry, but also created another 400,000 jobs and energized many trading companies. For COSCO Shipping, operation in the US is like a stress test in a high-standard, international environment. It has helped COSCO become better at management, more competitive and more productive. COSCO Shipping has passed this test.

COSCO’s cooperation with the Port of Boston is an example of the win-win economic and trade cooperation between China and the US. In China’s 40-plus years of reform and opening-up, the US has got deeply involved in China’s development, and also benefited a lot from it. According to statistics, over 70,000 American companies have invested in Chinese market. 97% of them made profits in the past year, and 64% of them saw their revenue increase. China-US trade volume was over 580 billion dollars in 2020, and reached 750 billion dollars in 2021. Our trade has provided many quality but inexpensive products for American consumers, and supported 2.6 million American jobs. The US is one of the biggest sources of foreign investment for China, and China is the No. 2 holder of America’s treasury bonds. China and the US have long been bound together by our shared interests.

Friends,

This year marks the 50th anniversary of President Nixon’s visit to China. We have learned from the past five decades that China-US cooperation can deliver many things good for both countries and the whole world; it can also bring tangible benefits and opportunities to places like the Port of Boston, to our longshoremen, and to all of us. If China and the US enter into conflict and confrontation, if we fight a trade war or a new “Cold War”, it will be a political tragedy that benefits no one. It will cause unbearable cost to each of us, to people like you and me. Faced with all these global challenges, fighting the pandemic, restoring growth, stabilizing industrial chain and supply chain, and addressing climate change, China and the US have no better choice than solidarity and cooperation. This is also the expectation of the international community. Our two countries should keep in mind what brought us together 50 years ago, implement the agreement of the two Presidents, follow the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation and take our relations back to the right track. This is also to give the world some long-awaited stability and certainty.

In a few days’ time, we will celebrate Chinese New Year. Please accept my festive greetings to you. I wish you joy, health and every success!


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