Siemens CEO hails Chinese economic transformation toward high-quality development

China's evolution from the world's workbench to an advanced technology hub reflects its strategic vision and commitment to innovation, said Roland Busch, president and CEO of Siemens AG, in an interview with China Central Television (CCTV) that aired Friday.

The German industrial giant has maintained a presence in China for over 150 years. Historical records reveal that founder Ernst Werner von Siemens foresaw the nation's need for advanced technology as early as the 1870s, an insight cemented when Siemens-powered trams debuted in Beijing in 1899.

From 2005 to 2007, Busch served as President and CEO of the former Siemens VDO Automotive Asia Pacific, a car electric automotive electronics company based in Shanghai. Drawing on this experience, the top executive highlighted how China’s strategic focus on new quality productive forces aligns with Siemens' long-standing commitment to innovation.

"It is a process, as you said, it's now maybe with a strategy of deploying new quality productive forces. It's just an extension of what we saw over the many years. I lived in China, it's more than 10 years ago that I lived in China. I saw that already coming. It started off basically with China being the workbench for the world, just taking any products and manufacture them locally in China with lower cost," he said.

Busch reflected on China's early role as a low-cost manufacturing hub while highlighting its remarkable shift towards technological leadership.

"And over the years, obviously, the companies working in China including the international ones, the local ones, they acquired technology and knowledge and on technologies and you see an extension. It's boosted now because technology is changing so fast. So therefore, it's completely the right strategy to put more emphasis on that," Busch said.

Siemens now operates 21 R-and-D centers and over 50 factories in China. Recent initiatives include AI-powered industrial metaverse collaborations and smart infrastructure projects.

Siemens CEO hails Chinese economic transformation toward high-quality development

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned on Sunday that Tehran would view the United States and Israel's military bases and facilities in the Middle East as "legitimate targets" should Washington take military action against Iran.

At a parliamentary session convened to review an emergency proposal on assembly regulations, Qalibaf emphasized that, at this highly sensitive juncture, Iran must accurately and thoroughly identify the schemes of its adversaries.

Qalibaf said that Iran is currently confronting Israel and the United States simultaneously on four fronts: economic, cognitive, military, and counterterrorism. Of them, the economic warfare and the cognitive and psychological warfare began many years ago and have persisted to this day, growing increasingly complex and intense in recent years.

The remarks came as U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly "seriously considering authorizing a strike" against Iran, taking advantage of its nationwide unrest.

Protests have erupted in several Iranian cities since late December over the sharp fall of the rial and long-standing economic hardship. Iranian authorities have acknowledged the demonstrations and voiced willingness to address economic grievances, while warning against violence and vandalism.

Amid the ongoing protests, deadly clashes have been reported lately between police and what the government described as "rioters." However, no official death toll has been released.

Also on Sunday, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will address the country's economic situation and political environment in a televised interview later that day.

Iran swears to counterattack if attacked