7月8日，中国贸促会会长高燕在《中国日报》就推动中英经贸人文交流发表英文署名文章，全文如下：
China Daily:'Icebreakers' key to Sino-UK business ties
Last year, President Xi Jinping had two telephone conversations with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and charted the course for further advancing Sino-British relations. In February 2021, Premier Li Keqiang delivered a speech, via video link, at a New Year banquet held by the United Kingdom's 48 Group Club, encouraging Chinese and British peoples to strengthen the "icebreaker" spirit.
And on July 6, Premier Li and British business representatives held a successful dialogue, through video link, which greatly encouraged and supported Chinese and British business communities to advance practical cooperation, reflecting his eagerness to champion Sino-British friendship.
With long histories and splendid cultures, China and the UK are important representatives of Eastern and Western civilizations. Exchanges between the peoples of the two countries go back a long time in history. At the beginning of the 1950s, when Western countries imposed embargo on trade with China, visionary British businessmen led by Jack Perry overcame many obstacles to make an ice-breaking trip to China, with the support of the older generation of revolutionaries, including then Premier Zhou Enlai. They not only "broke the ice" to trade with New China, but also left us with a rich heritage of China-UK friendship and exchanges.
The "ice-breaking" spirit has been carried forward from generation to generation for more than half a century. A new generation of "icebreakers" represented by the 48 Group Club and China-Britain Business Council is committed to working－with enthusiasm and passion－to strengthen China-UK friendship and cooperation in all areas.
In this process, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade has maintained close cooperation with the CBBC and the 48 Group Club, making greater efforts to strengthen unity and overcome the difficulties and obstacles to help each other, assisting Chinese and British enterprises to stabilize development, leading business communities to shoulder more responsibilities, and organizing a series of events of great significance.
Recommended by the CCPIT, Stephen Perry, Chairman of the 48 Group Club and son of Jack Perry, was awarded the China Reform and Friendship Medal in 2018. In 2019, Hu Chunhua, vice-premier of the State Council, China's Cabinet, met with the CBBC delegation and, in response to Stephen Perry's correspondence in 2020, encouraged the British business community to make greater contributions to China-UK business exchanges.
Chinese and British business communities have contributed to and benefited from China-UK business cooperation and witnessed the rapid growth of China-UK business relations. For more than a decade, China-UK trade in goods has doubled, and British exports to China have increased by about 20 times. China has become the third-largest export market for British goods while China's investment in the UK has increased by about 20 times. Also, the UK has become the second-largest destination for Chinese investment in Europe, with the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant being China's single-largest investment in Europe, and a flagship project of China-UK cooperation.
Besides, financial cooperation between China and the UK has created many "firsts": the UK is the first country to issue renminbi sovereign bonds and the first to apply to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The Shanghai London Stock Connect for the first time connected the Chinese capital market with a foreign one, enabling many Chinese companies to be listed in London.
China-UK cooperation in the Belt and Road Initiative is still gathering momentum as the two countries have signed agreements on third-party market cooperation committed to high-quality development of the initiative.
Moreover, China-UK bilateral trade grew against all odds in 2020, a year marked by the combined forces of changes and a pandemic, both unseen in a century. In the first quarter of 2021, China became the largest goods trading partner of the UK, and the largest source of imports for the UK for four consecutive quarters, reflecting the resilience and potential of China-UK business relations.
Both China and the UK are undergoing a profound transformation. China is in a critical period of achieving national rejuvenation. This year marks the first year of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and China has embarked on a new journey of building a great modern socialist country in all respects. It is also fostering a new development paradigm at a faster pace, with the focus on institutional opening-up that covers rules, regulations, management and standards.
China will continue efforts to foster a business environment that is based on market principles, governed by law and is up to international standards, so as to motivate all types of market players. At the same time, the UK has entered a new stage of delivering "Global Britain" and expanding global partnerships.
Our two countries also face the global challenges of COVID-19 and climate change. History shows that closer exchanges and cooperation between China and the UK, both permanent members of the UN Security Council and countries with global influence, conform to the trend of the times, serve the interests of both sides, and contribute to world peace, stability and prosperity. Under the new circumstances, China-UK cooperation has great potential and the two economies have strong complementarity in areas such as climate change, finance and modern services, as well as third-party cooperation with Africa, in which Chinese and British business communities will find development opportunities.
Connecting the Chinese government and businesses, the domestic and foreign market players, and supply and demand, the CCPIT is not only a critical bridge for business exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and foreign business communities, but also an engine for efficient and smooth domestic circulation and domestic and international circulations that reinforce each other. The CCPIT will continue to work with the CBBC and the 48 Group Club to carry forward the "ice-breaking" spirit while keeping the original aspiration of promoting friendship and development.
We will build on the momentum and adapt to changes in the following areas: we will nurture the "ice-breaking" spirit among future generations and give full play to our respective strengths in different channels and resources. Stronger and more practical measures will be taken to enrich and improve the cooperation mechanism by implementing the exchange programs of "China link and Virtual Visit" launched by the CBBC. We will support a new generation of "young icebreakers" for diversified exchanges and activities, sharing good stories of win-win cooperation and friendly exchanges between the two countries, so as to lay a solid foundation for exchange, cooperation and friendship, contribute to the healthy development of China-UK relations, and build up momentum for friendship between the two peoples.
We will uphold mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation, and support extensive business collaboration of the two countries in trade and investment, financial services, medical treatment and healthcare, and third-party market, so that Chinese and British companies can enjoy more substantial benefits and gather added momentum to boost China-UK practical cooperation and stabilize bilateral relations.
We will constantly strengthen the "ice-breaking" spirit. And we are committed to breaking the "ice" of unilateralism and protectionism while upholding multilateralism and free trade in support of the rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, inclusive and transparent multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization as its core. In this way, the Chinese and British business communities will contribute their wisdom and strength to global economic recovery and growth and an open world economy, and help build a community with a shared future for mankind.
7月8日，《经济日报》刊发中国贸促会会长高燕署名文章《做中英经贸人文交流桥梁纽带》，全文如下：
做中英经贸人文交流桥梁纽带
高燕
去年，习近平主席两次同英国首相约翰逊通电话，为两国关系发展指明了方向。今年2月，李克强总理在英国48家集团俱乐部“破冰者”2021新春庆祝活动上发表视频致辞，勉励中英各界人士传承和弘扬“破冰者”精神。7月6日，李克强总理同英国工商界代表视频对话会成功举办，给予两国工商界推进务实合作极大鼓舞和支持，为中英友好人士带来殷切关怀和温暖。
作为中英经贸合作的推动者和受益者，两国工商界共同见证了中英经贸关系的飞速发展。过去十多年来，中英货物贸易额翻了一番，英国对华出口增长约20倍，中国成为英国第三大货物出口市场；中国对英投资增长约20倍，英国成为中国在欧洲第二大投资目的地国，欣克利角C核电站作为中国在欧洲最大单笔投资，成为中英合作旗舰项目；中英金融合作开创诸多“第一”：英国第一个发人民币主权债券，第一个申请加入亚投行；“沪伦通”正式开通，多家中资企业在伦交所上市，开创中国与境外资本市场互联互通先河；中英“一带一路”合作方兴未艾，双方签署第三方市场合作协议，共同致力于推进“一带一路”高质量发展。去年，面对百年变局和世纪疫情交织叠加，中英双边贸易额逆势增长，今年第一季度中国跃升为英国最大货物贸易伙伴，中国连续四个季度成为英国最大进口来源国，展现出中英经贸关系的韧性和潜力。
当前，中英两国各自正经历着深刻变革。中国正处于实现中华民族伟大复兴的关键时期，今年起，开始实施“十四五”规划，开启全面建设社会主义现代化国家新征程，正在加快构建新发展格局，着力推动规则、规制、管理、标准等制度型开放，打造市场化、法治化、国际化营商环境，激发各类市场主体活力。同时，英国也进入打造“全球化英国”和拓展全球合作伙伴的新阶段，两国共同面对新冠肺炎疫情、气候变化等全球性挑战。历史充分证明，中英作为联合国安理会常任理事国和具有重要国际影响的国家，双方加强交流与合作，顺乎时代潮流，符合两国利益，也有利于促进世界和平、稳定、繁荣。新形势下，中英双方在气候变化、金融及现代服务业、对非三方合作等诸多领域合作潜力大、互补性强，中英工商界迎来发展良机。
中国贸促会连接政企、衔接内外、对接供需，是中外工商界开展经贸交往的重要桥梁纽带，也是推动国内大循环高效畅通、国内国际双循环相互促进的重要力量。我们将继续与英中贸易协会、英国48家集团俱乐部等机构一道，传承和弘扬“破冰者”精神，保持推动友谊与发展的初心，乘势而上、顺势而为：
鼓励“破冰者”精神薪火相传，充分发挥各自渠道和资源优势，以更大力度、更实举措，不断充实和完善合作机制，开展好英中贸易协会发起的“连接中国”“在线访华”等交流项目，支持新一代“青年破冰者”开展多元交流活动，讲好中英合作共赢和中英友好往来故事，铺设更多的交往之路，架起更好的合作之桥，打造更实的友谊之基，为推动中英关系健康发展、增进两国人民友谊积蓄正能量。
坚持互利共赢合作导向，推动双方工商界在贸易投资、金融服务、医疗卫生、第三方市场等领域广泛开展互利合作，切实增强双方企业的受惠面和获得感，不断扩大中英务实合作的积极面，增强中英关系稳定性。
不断赋予“破冰者”精神新的时代内涵，致力于打破单边主义和保护主义的“坚冰”，高举多边主义和自由贸易的旗帜，支持以世贸组织为核心，以规则为基础，非歧视、开放、包容和透明的多边贸易体制，为促进世界经济复苏增长、建设开放型世界经济、构建人类命运共同体贡献中英工商界智慧和力量。
中英两国都拥有悠久的历史和灿烂的文化，是东西方文明的重要代表，两国人民交往源远流长。上世纪50年代初，西方国家对新中国实行贸易封锁之际，在周恩来总理等老一辈革命家的关心下，以杰克·佩里先生为代表的英国工商界有识之士，冲破重重阻碍来到中国，打破当时的坚冰，开启了中英贸易的大门，也为两国友好交往留下了宝贵的精神财富。半个多世纪以来，“破冰者”精神代代传承，以英国48家集团俱乐部、英中贸易协会为代表的新一代“破冰者”，继续以满腔热情投入中英友好事业，长期致力于发展各领域中英合作，为发展中英友好关系做了大量工作。在此过程中，中国贸促会与英中贸易协会、英国48家集团俱乐部等保持密切合作，付出巨大努力，克服困难、冲破阻力，同舟共济、守望相助，帮助和支持两国企业稳步发展，带领和组织工商界积极担当，多次成功组织一系列具有重要影响的活动。在中国贸促会的积极推荐下，现任英国48家集团俱乐部主席、杰克·佩里之子斯蒂芬·佩里先生于2018年荣获“中国改革友谊奖章”；国务院副总理胡春华于2019年会见英中贸易协会代表团，并在2020年复信斯蒂芬·佩里，鼓励英国工商界为中英经贸交流作出更大贡献。
