On September 16, 2015, the 14th "Lanting Forum" with the theme of "President Xi Jinping's State Visit to the US and Attendance at Summits Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Establishment of the UN" was held at the Foreign Ministry. Foreign Minister Wang Yi delivered a keynote speech titled "For China-US Friendly Cooperation, For Global Peace and Development", emphasizing that President Xi Jinping's visit will be a trip to enhance trust and reduce misgivings, focus on cooperation, put people first and create the future. About 350 people including foreign diplomatic envoys in China, representatives of international organizations in China, business representatives, Chinese and foreign experts and scholars, and journalists attended the Forum.

Wang Yi expressed that President Xi Jinping's state visit upon invitation to the US and attendance at a series of summits commemorating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the UN aims to enhance friendly cooperation between China and the US and contribute to world peace and development. It will surely be a major milestone for China-US relations and even the process of world peace and development.

Wang Yi pointed out that President Xi Jinping's visit to the US will provide a historic opportunity for China and the US to review the past, reflect on the present and chart the course for the future. Both China and the US should work together to ensure the sound and steady growth of China-US relations and deliver more tangible results in the building of a new model of major-country relations between China and the US.

Wang Yi said that first and foremost this visit will help enhance trust and reduce misgivings. China-US relations have always gone far beyond the bilateral context and taken on rich strategic implications. China and the US working together will benefit both countries and the world at large, whereas frictions in relations will undermine both countries' interests and affect the wider world. In recent years, China and the US have realized the great responsibilities on their shoulders and have established all-round dialogue and cooperation mechanisms. At the same time, the different historical and cultural backgrounds, social systems and development stages make it just natural for China and the US to have differences and disagreements. As the exchanges continue to deepen, there may be more questions and challenges for the two countries to handle. What is important is that both sides should maintain strategic communication in all aspects, increase strategic trust, dispel strategic misgivings and avoid strategic miscalculation. During this visit, President Xi Jinping will hold multiple talks with President Barack Obama and make extensive contacts with US people from all walks of life both in and outside the government. These will be occasions for President Xi Jinping to make clear China's concept of peaceful development and win-win cooperation and to relate to the American people the importance of having China-US cooperation, not confrontation. They will also be opportunities to address concerns of the US about possible conflict with China regarding the current international system and order in the Asia-Pacific. We hope that the two sides will use such opportunities to reaffirm respective development directions and strategic intentions, growing common interests and responsibilities of safeguarding world peace, stability and development.

Wang Yi expressed that China is a staunch supporter of the current international order.There is no reason for China to challenge the international order that is based on the victory against fascism. And there is no incentive for China to overturn the international system in which it is a full member. But at the same time, the international order and system also need to keep abreast of the times and go through reforms and improvements so as to follow the trend of the times in the development and progress of international relations, better reflect the legitimate calls of the vast number of developing countries and better enable countries to address emerging global challenges in the new situation. China stands ready to work with other countries and play its due part in making the international order and system more just and equitable.

Wang Yi said that China is also a staunch supporter of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. China is committed to the notions of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness in its neighborhood diplomacy and sticks to the policy of good-neighborliness and friendliness. China's development is not about moving the cheese of others. It is about making the pie of win-win cooperation bigger with other countries. China's goal is not to create the so-called "spheres of influence" but to build communities of common interests and shared destiny. By putting forward initiatives such as building the "Belt and Road", China does not intend to seek dominance over regional affairs but to offer new opportunities for common development to other countries. And China's proposal on the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is not meant to start something new, but to improve the existing financial system and remove bottlenecks for financing in the region. The necessary construction activities by China on its own islands and reefs in the South China Sea are not directed against anyone. Rather, they are designed to improve logistic conditions, enhance defense capabilities and enable China to fulfill its international obligation as the largest littoral state of the South China Sea. Wang Yi emphasized that the Nansha Islands are China's territory. This is backed by abundant historical and legal facts. It is simply understandable and natural for a sovereign country to uphold its own territorial sovereignty and prevent its legitimate rights and interests from being undermined. At the same time, China is committed to finding peaceful solution to disputes through dialogues and consultations on the basis of international law. China is committed to advancing consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea toward early agreement and to rule-based and proper management of differences. China is committed to peace and stability in the South China Sea and to freedom of navigation and overflight by all countries in accordance with law. These are China's positions that will stay unchanged.

Wang Yi expressed that efforts to enhance trust and reduce misgivings between China and the US are aimed to promote sound development of bilateral relations and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation between the two sides at the regional and global levels.We believe that as long as China and the US hold firm to the bottom line of no conflict and no confrontation and consolidate the basis of mutual respect, both will make greater progress in win-win cooperation.We hope that China and the US will work together to jointly uphold the UN-centered international order and international system, and adhere to the norms governing international relations that are based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

Wang Yi said that President Xi Jinping's visit will focus on cooperation. The all-dimensional and strategic cooperation between China and the US is providing positive energy and new drivers to boost not just bilateral relations, but also the cause of global peace and development. President Xi Jinping's visit to the US will advance bilateral cooperation to a new height. The two sides are expected to reach important consensus in fields including economy and trade, energy, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, climate change, environmental protection, finance, science and technology, agriculture, law enforcement, defense, aviation and infrastructure construction, as well as to sign a large number of cooperation agreements of far-reaching impacts. The two sides will also conduct in-depth exchanges of views on various regional and international hotspot issues and further strengthen coordination and cooperation. We believe this visit will expand the scope of common interests and add extra substance to the new model of major-country relations between the two countries.

The two sides will endeavor to bridge gaps and strive for new and important progress in BIT negotiations, which will open up new prospects and create new sources of growth for China-US cooperation. The two sides will deepen bilateral cooperation on economy and trade, and set higher and more ambitious targets for fields such as bilateral trade and mutual investment. The two sides will expand cooperation on addressing global climate change and, while adhering to their respective basic standings, actively push forward the process of multilateral negotiations. The two sides will have a deep-going discussion on the current global economic and financial situation and increase communication and coordination on respective domestic economic policies so as to send a positive signal that they will promote stability and growth of the global economy. The two sides will actively conduct development cooperation that is based on the consent and participation of third countries. They may tap their respective strengths and work together to contribute to the attainment of the UN post-2015 development goals. The two sides will step up dialogue on cyber issues, combat together all forms of cyber-crimes according to law, uphold cyber security and carry out cooperation in cyberspace, so as to play a constructive role in building a peaceful, secure, open and cooperation-oriented global cyberspace. The two sides will also step up cooperation on a wide range of regional and international affairs such as cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and implementation of the comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue, so as to jointly maintain and promote world peace, stability and development.

Wang Yi said that President Xi Jinping's visit will be a people-first visit. China-US friendship is powered by the people and rooted in the people. A major highlight as well as a notable feature of President Xi Jinping's visit to the US will be his extensive outreach to the common US people. President Xi Jinping's visit will start from Seattle on the west coast where he will meet US people from all walks of life. Throughout his visit, President Xi Jinping will interact with people in American cities and states, the business community, friendly groups, and a broad cross-section of American society. The President will deliver speeches to the general public, hold meetings with representatives of business leaders and have cordial exchanges with school faculties and students. The two sides will also announce a series of significant measures, which will bring some further good news to students, tourists and other people traveling between the two countries. We believe that President Xi Jinping's visit will generate a new wave of interest in China in the American society and usher in a new boom of people-to-people exchanges between China and the US.

Additionally, China's sustained development and deepening China-US cooperation in economy, trade and other fields will ultimately benefit the two peoples and bring more and more visible, tangible and vital interests to them. It is estimated that by 2022, China will grow into the world's biggest importer and China and the US are expected to become each other's biggest trading partner. Then, US export to China is expected to surpass 530 billion US dollars and generate over 3.34 million new jobs. Estimated by the China-United States Exchange Foundation, China's investment in the US, by 2020, will reach 200 billion US dollars and create 4 million new job opportunities for US workers.

Wang Yi said that this visit will be future-oriented. President Xi Jinping's visit aims not only to summarize the past and enhance mutual trust, but more importantly, to work with the US side to usher in the future from a long-term vision. Since China and the US are two permanent members of the UN Security Council and the world's largest and second largest economy respectively, the direction of China-US relations not only concerns the vital interests of the two peoples, but also bears on the future of the Asia-Pacific and the world at large. Therefore, many countries hope to understand more about China's development orientation and reasonable expectation for China-US relations in the future. They expect to look for signals on whether the two countries are competing or cooperating, and whether the two countries will coexist in peace or get stuck in friction or even confrontation. President Xi Jinping's visit will bring a clear message to the government and people of the US and the rest of the world that as a big country in the East with a 5000-year-old civilization, China will adhere to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, pursuing the independent foreign policy of peace and advancing the win-win strategy of opening-up. What China adheres to is not hegemony after getting strong but peaceful development, what China advances is not power politics but democratization of international relations, what China advocates is not zero-sum game but win-win cooperation, and what China pursues is not selfish interests but a right approach to interests and principles. China has built up the strategic layout of promoting "Four Comprehensives". Enjoying ceaseless reform, endless opening-up, more sound rule of law and a more mature market, China will surely open up broader prospects for cooperation with the US and other countries in the world.

The US leaders have emphasized many times that they welcome a strong, prosperous and stable China which plays a bigger role in international and regional affairs. We hope that the US will match this important statement with concrete actions and follow it earnestly in its practical interactions with China. We hope that people will hold such expectations that whatever domestic changes in the two countries, both sides will stay on the track of building a new model of major-country relations; whatever problems may crop up in the bilateral relations, China and the US will respect each other, enhance trust and reduce misgivings and seek common ground while removing differences to maintain healthy and steady growth of the bilateral relations; and whatever issues and challenges the international community may confront in the future, the two sides will strengthen cooperation to jointly safeguard world peace and promote development of mankind.

With respect to President Xi Jinping's attendance at the summits marking the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the UN, Wang Yi expressed that this year is not only the 70th anniversary of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and the founding of the UN, but also witnesses the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda. During this visit, President Xi Jinping will join leaders of other countries at the UN Headquarters with the aim to renew the spirit of the UN Charter and galvanize the synergy of the "united nations" into actions to further promote peace and development of mankind at a new starting point. President Xi Jinping's visit to the UN will take peace and development as the main line, building a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation as the theme, and the UN summits as the stage to put forward China's initiatives for and make China's due contributions to the welfare of the "peoples of the United Nations".

Wang Yi said that China will join other countries in exploring new visions for international relations. The vision of building a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping means, first and foremost, to carry forward the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and is also an innovation beyond traditional international relations and a significant inspiration to the international community. During this visit, President Xi Jinping will give a comprehensive elaboration about this vision of new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation for the first time at the UN Headquarters. He will also outline, in a systemic way, the specific path to forge a community of shared destiny for mankind.

China will work with other countries to lend new impetus to world peace. Peace is the foundation for human survival, while justice is what world peace is built upon. The common understanding and conclusions about the tragic history of the World Anti-Fascist War represent a red line that cannot be crossed, and a matter of principle the international community must not be confused with. At the summits marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the UN, President Xi Jinping will review, together with the international community, mankind's arduous journey in pursuit of peace, outline China's principled positions on major and immediate international issues and announce important measures China will take to support the UN which will demonstrate China's commitment to its responsibilities to maintain world peace. President Xi Jinping will also expound on the visions and principles that guide China's active support to and participation in UN peacekeeping missions and express China's willingness to make new contributions to the UN efforts in fulfilling its mandate of peace and security.

China will work together with other countries to draw a new blueprint for global development. At the UN Development Summit, President Xi Jinping will take part in the discussions on how to promote global development, expound on the vision of equitable, open, all-round and innovation-driven development, and put forward new initiatives for greater global development cooperation for ensuring a good start to implement the post-2015 development agenda with other countries. President Xi Jinping will chair the High-level Roundtable on South-South Cooperation to be co-hosted by China and the UN. He and leaders of other developing countries will review past experience, plan for the future, and formulate an action plan for deepening South-South cooperation in the new period, aiming to bring South-South cooperation to a new height. China and the UN have put forward a joint initiative of convening a Global Leaders' Meeting on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment. This will be the first time that commitment is made at the leaders' level on issues concerning women worldwide, which will open a new historical chapter for the empowerment of women. President Xi Jinping will also attend an event on climate change where he will have in-depth discussions with leaders from other countries on ways to address climate change and realize sustainable development.

Wang Yi finally noted that we expect and believe that President Xi Jinping's visit to the US and the UN will surely strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation between China and the US, gather strength for world peace and development and open up a better future for China-US relations and the human society!

President of China Institute of International Studies (CIIS) Su Ge, former Under-Secretary-General of the UN Jin Yongjian, Vice President of CIIS Ruan Zongze, Vice President of China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) Yuan Peng and Vice President of School of International Studies of Peking University Wang Yizhou gave speeches respectively on specific topics including how China and the US conduct sound interactions, prospects for China-US relations, the important role of the UN and China-UN relations. They also communicated and interacted with other guests.