CANBERRA, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's reaffirmation of Beijing's commitment to peaceful development has sent "a great signal" to the world, said a former Australian minister.
China will stay on the path of peaceful development and further open itself up, a move that would be beneficial to both China and the world, Xi stressed Tuesday in a speech marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.
"We will continue to work with people from all countries to push for jointly building a community with a shared future for humanity," reiterated the Chinese head of state.
In a telephone interview with Xinhua, Andrew Robb, who served as Australia's minister for trade and investment, said the remarks gave "a great signal about where China is heading under the leadership of President Xi."
"It's a great comfort, I think, to not only the Chinese people, but to many, many people around the globe who do look to the success of China, but also look to the opportunity that it presents," he added. "If China grows, the world grows."
Robb said he is impressed by China's achievements over the last 70 years, particularly the last four decades.
"It's been remarkable, truly remarkable," added Robb, who is now an advisory board member of Australia-China Belt and Road Initiative, an Australian government-supported policy institute.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which consists of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, was launched by China in 2013 to promote economic cooperation and common development along and beyond the ancient Silk Road trade routes.
Robb said he believes all can benefit from the BRI, both developing and developed nations. He added that a lot of Australian companies are already heavily involved in the initiative.
During his 2013-2016 term as minister for trade and investment, the free trade agreement between China and Australia officially entered into force in December 2015.
Robb said he was impressed by his Chinese counterparts' efforts to open up the country in negotiating the agreement, which "was perceived around the world as a very ambitious agreement between our two countries."
"This is a remarkable example of ... what can be achieved between countries in different situations. And it has laid the groundwork, the foundations for an enormous success. So this is what is intended for the future."
From Xi's speech, "we can see further growth, further wealth, further security for the Chinese people," he said. "And that suggests a world (that) hopefully is peaceful, prosperous and healthy."
