Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne praised Chinese President Xi Jinping for his empathy, and hailed China's contribution to global development in an interview with China Media Group (CMG) which was aired on Friday.
Browne made an official visit to China from Jan 22 to 28 at the invitation of Chinese Premier Li Qiang. During the trip he spoke to CMG on "acts of benevolence" taken by China to pursue common development with other countries, and how this benevolence is reflected in President Xi.
"You understand the pain of others, and then you cannot see them hurting and not help. This is where in the words of President Xi, that we all have an obligation as human beings to help each other, to be benevolent with each other, recognizing our common humanity, and the fact to that by helping each other it is egalitarian, it's a win-win for everyone. So again I can understand that President Xi is bringing what have obviously kept him humble and empathetic. Perhaps unlike others who may not have that type of cultural orientation in the youth. I have great admiration for President Xi as one who will consider to be easily the most impactful global leader. And we all know of the various initiatives to include the Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative, the civilization and security initiatives. So again, kudos to President Xi." Browne said.
The prime minister pointed out that while many developed countries shunned sharing, China has been actively sharing opportunities and using its resources to construct inclusive platforms to help fellow developing countries.
"There are some countries which if it wasn't for this funding architecture that China would develop, we would have been precluded from accessing adequate funding to fund our development. So again, what China is doing here is very important. It's an act of benevolence that is appreciated literally by all developing states that would have accessed Chinese funding. And I would say here that the various initiatives have resonated globally, including the Belt and Road initiative. And again, as I said before, we have been beneficiaries of that initiative. And whereas the developed world, they continue to dominate global resources and have not been very benevolent. China, on the other hand, even though not the wealthiest country on the planet, has been sharing while it's obviously developing its own people and lifting them out of poverty, which in itself is phenomenal in terms of what China has done within the last four decades. It's also sharing with others and helping to ensure that is a shared future of prosperity globally," Browne said.
PM of Antigua and Barbuda hails China's contribution to global development
