High-quality cooperation on agenda of BRI forum

China will host in October the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, the most highlighted event to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The forum in Beijing will also be an important platform for various parties to discuss high-quality cooperation in jointly building the Belt and Road, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Thursday.

China is maintaining communication with various parties on preparations for the forum, Wang told a daily news conference.

Focusing on boosting connectivity, the initiative aims to provide a platform for global economic cooperation and inject fresh impetus into the development of various countries as well as global economic growth, he said.

Over the past decade, China has signed cooperation documents on the BRI with more than 150 countries and more than 30 international organizations.

The initiative has galvanized nearly1 trillion of investment globally and created more than 3,000 projects.

Wang said that the BRI has become the most welcomed global public good as well as the largest platform for international cooperation.

The full implementation of BRI transportation projects could increase global real income by 0.7 to 2.9 percent, and could help lift 7.6 million people out of extreme poverty and 32 million people out of moderate poverty globally by 2030, the World Bank has estimated.

Programs under the initiative also actively fulfill environmental responsibility by carrying out ecological and environmental governance as well as biodiversity conservation, Wang said.

According to Wang, China has signed more than 50 cooperation document on ecological and environmental protection with relevant parties, and has launched Belt and Road partnerships on green development with 31 countries.

China will take the third forum as an opportunity to work with the international community to sum up experiences and draw a new blueprint to continue to promote high-quality construction of the Belt and Road, he said.

Also on Thursday, Wang announced that in accordance with law, China will impose reciprocal visa restrictions on United States individuals involved in spreading rumors of "forcible assimilation" in Tibet and those who have long meddled in Tibet-related issues.

The countermeasure came after the US announced imposition of visa restrictions on Chinese officials over the alleged "forcible assimilation" of Tibetan children in boarding schools last week.