A former UN Security Council president has commended China's release of the World Openness Report 2025, as well as the country's unique approach to openness through initiatives and events such as the China International Import Expo (CIIE).
China released the flagship report at this year's 8th Hongqiao International Economic Forum, which coincided with the CIIE in Shanghai in November.
In an interview with the China Media Group (CMG) in Shanghai, Kishore Mahbubani, former permanent representative of Singapore to the United Nations, discussed the significance of the report against the backdrop of a complex and changing global environment.
"It's actually very good to have a world openness report at a time when everybody in the West believes that the world is de-globalizing, retreating. And to some extent, the report confirms that in 2025, the world has regressed in terms of openness. But what of course is equally important is that it is now the Western countries, especially the United States that are afraid of globalization. And now it's the Asian countries that are embracing globalization. Now this is the exact opposite of a world that was there 30-40 years ago," he said.
For Mahbubani, these historical shifts in global economic attitudes have also reshaped how he views events that took place during his diplomatic tenure.
"I remember when I was ambassador to the UN from 1984 to 1989, the German ambassador very proudly told the countries of the developing world, he said, if you want to develop, it's very simple. Just develop the ability, to manufacture towels, and make sure you can deliver them at the right price, at the right quality, at the right time, and then you'll be successfully developed. But he said it with such a great confidence that only the West could do this kind of manufacturing and of course the rest would struggle at it. But now the world has turned 180 degrees. And many, many people in the West are frightened of globalization. Whereas by contrast, the Asian countries who have now benefited the most from globalization are now embracing it, which is why it's actually very good that China is producing the World Openness Report," he said.
This November, the former Singaporean diplomat attended the CIIE and witnessed firsthand how China is putting its own approach to openness into practice.
"It's quite amazing that (China is) the only country to organize an international import expo. And it's interesting that, the Western countries actually wish you to be fair to them, used to import lots of products from the rest of the world. They could have organized an import expo also, but they didn't do so. And I think it's good that China is doing so, and it's good that China, for example, is now imposing zero percent tariffs on products from Africa, for example. And I think that's a major contribution that China is making towards the development of Africa because at a time, in the year when the United States has increased tariffs on many countries in the world, including African countries, it's good for China to announce it's going to have zero percent tariffs," he said.
Former Singaporean diplomat highlights significance of World Openness Report
