On October 31, 2018, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi jointly met the press with Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato of Papua New Guinea after their talks in Port Moresby. A reporter asked Wang Yi about Western countries and media's hype that China's aid for the Pacific Island countries caused debt burden for them.

Wang Yi expressed that China's aid for the Pacific Island countries is the mutual support and assistance between developing countries, and is an important part of South-South cooperation. China's foreign aid has its own distinctive characteristics:

First, equality. China's aid fully respects the will of the governments and people of all countries. It comes without interfering in their domestic affairs or any political strings attached.

Second, mutual benefit. China's aid always adheres to mutual benefit and win-win results. All aid projects have been taken serious-minded feasibility research and scientific verification, and full consideration has been given to the financial sustainability of all countries.

Third, openness. China's aid never targets any third party, nor intends to touch the cheese of any country. Instead, China is committed to making the cake of cooperation bigger, thus we are also willing to carry out third party cooperation with other countries.

Fourth, sustainability. China's aid perseveres in "teaching them how to fish", helps all countries overcome development bottlenecks, and enhance their hematopoietic function rather than a simple blood transfusion, thus promoting the self-supported and sustainable development of all countries.

Wang Yi expressed that in line with these characteristics and principles, the Chinese side has aided and built more than 100 complete sets of projects including international conference centers, ports, roads, office buildings, schools and hospitals in Papua New Guinea and other Pacific Island countries in recent years. The Chinese side has sponsored over 1,300 young students from the Pacific Island countries to study in China, and trained more than 4,000 professionals, vigorously promoting the development and the improvement of people's livelihood of the Pacific Island countries. Such gestures have won the unanimous welcome and appreciation of all the Pacific Island countries that have established diplomatic relations with China.

Wang Yi noted that the governments and people of recipient countries have the most say in whether China's aid is good or not. We always uphold the right approach to justice and interests with a priority to justice. China's foreign aid can stand the test of time and the judgment of the international community. What I would like to say is that those who criticize China's good deeds should rather do more themselves to seek benefits for the Pacific Island countries.