BRI Crucial for Generations to Come: President of Swiss Confederation

BERN, Switzerland -- China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a fundamental task crucial for generations to come, which, when implemented smoothly, will bring many benefits to both the economic development and the well-being of the people worldwide, President Ueli Maurer of the Swiss Confederation has said.

In a joint interview with Chinese media, Maurer said BRI has created a new dimension for the development of world economy, which as such a long-term strategic plan is rarely seen so far.

As some landmark projects for sustainable development will be launched in the near future, the positive results of these projects could dispel doubts from certain sideliners, thus laying the foundation for a better global development in the future, Maurer said.

The Swiss president held that globalization is the key to success of the global development, and to achieve globalization, infrastructure construction at various levels would be indispensable. In this sense, he said, the BRI is a future-oriented project that will contribute to globalization, in which everyone can benefit from improving and upgrading infrastructure.

China and the West have differences in terms of concept, development history and political system, and it is important to strengthen dialogue between the two sides during the implementation of the BRI, Maurer said.

Many Westerners may have been concerned about China's rapid development for it's beyond their expectations, but they should respect China's great achievements, Maurer said, as only in this way can the two sides have a good basis for dialogue. Any attempt to close the door of conversation would be wrong, he added.

Talking of his country's role in the BRI, Maurer said that Switzerland is a neutral and developed economy that can serve as a bridge for cooperation between countries in Europe and Asia.

He assured that Switzerland is an open economy dedicated for a business-friendly environment, whether for finance, investment or insurance, while at the same time the location where many international organizations are based, another unique competitiveness for Switzerland.

Despite a huge difference in size, Switzerland and China have many things in common and have also maintained a very friendly relationship, Maurer said.

According to him, Swiss-Chinese mutual trust has laid a good foundation for bilateral cooperation, which can be further strengthened in the fields of finance, research and development, as well as in insurance.

Maurer has visited China for many times. Talking about the impression of China, he said that it's a great country with a unique history and whose economic achievements during recent years have been quite exceptional in human history.

The Swiss president said that he deeply admires the great achievements China has made, and that the Chinese people have left him a very good impression every time he visited the country. The peoples of Switzerland and China have many things in common, as they are both very humble, hardworking and intelligent, he said.

High-level exchanges between Switzerland and China have been frequent in recent years. "In the process of exchanges between the two governments, we have signed many agreements and hold many rounds of formal dialogues. I feel that as long as we shake hands, we can agree to make something to happen," he said.