First Observation | Understand the profound meaning of the General Secretary’s multiple inspections of the port

On the afternoon of May 22, General Secretary Xi Jinping inspected Rizhao City, Shandong Province and came to Rizhao Port to learn about the local situation of promoting smart and green port construction and expanding opening up to the outside world.

From the inspection of Wuhan Xingang Yangluo Container Port Area in July 2013, to the inspection of Ningbo Zhoushan Port Chuanshan Port Area in March 2020, to the inspection of the Hebei Huanghua Port Coal Port Area Terminal in May 2023...

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping has visited major domestic port areas many times to inspect the construction and operation of port terminals, listen to briefings on the layout of modern port clusters, railway, highway and waterway combined transport, and conduct discussions with on-site operators and construction personnel. comminicate.

General Secretary Xi Jinping once profoundly pointed out that "ports are basic and pivotal facilities." The General Secretary has visited and investigated the port many times, from which we can understand three profound meanings.

Shipping is an important carrier of global trade. In today's world of global economic and trade integration, the shipping industry is responsible for more than 80% of global trade transportation tasks. As an important gathering point and hub for shipping, ports use cargo throughput and container throughput as important indicators of trade development, which can most intuitively reflect local economic vitality and development trends, and are also known as the "barometer" of national economic development. .

Throughout the General Secretary’s previous inspections and surveys, ports and terminals are one of the focus points at critical moments in economic development.

In July 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping was in Hubei to investigate the issue of comprehensively deepening reforms and the current economic performance. As soon as he got off the plane, the General Secretary went to Wuhan Xingang Yangluo Container Port Area for inspection;

At the end of March 2020, at the special moment of fighting against the new coronavirus epidemic, Ningbo Zhoushan Port took the lead in resuming production. The General Secretary came here at the first stop of his inspection in Zhejiang;

This year is a critical year for achieving the goals and tasks of the "14th Five-Year Plan", and it is very crucial to do a good job in economic work.

Rizhao Port ranks among the top in the country in terms of throughput and is a global supply chain hub for bulk raw materials and energy. Data show that in the first quarter of this year, Rizhao Port's cargo throughput increased by 6.7% year-on-year, and container throughput increased by 15.3% year-on-year, achieving a "good start" in the first quarter.

The busy operation of bridge cranes and the frequent entry and exit of giant ships are a vivid reflection of my country's "good start to the economy".

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that in order for the economy to develop and the country to be strong, transportation, especially maritime transport, must first be strengthened. Ports are an important support for economic development, connecting tens of millions of foreign trade companies and markets upstream and downstream, showing the world the vitality and resilience of China's economy, as well as the courage and wisdom to face difficulties.

Walking into the Rizhao Port cargo terminal, rows of containers are neatly arranged, and driverless freight trucks shuttle in an orderly manner.

Empowering industrial innovation with technological innovation, Rizhao Port has comprehensively promoted the iterative upgrade of traditional ports to smart and green ports in recent years, and has accelerated the pace of "digital intelligence".

The magnificent transformation of Rizhao Port reflects the new trend of my country's port development accelerating from "big" to "strong" and from "fast" to "good".

At present, our country is accelerating the cultivation of new productive forces. Traditional ports embrace the digital, intelligent, and green transformation of the shipping industry, which is a reflection of accelerating the formation of new productivity.

On May 11, 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping came to the Huanghua Port Coal Port Area Terminal in Hebei Province for inspection and investigation. When he learned that a 50,000-ton coal ship could complete loading and unloading within 24 hours, and that it was completely unmanned and fully automated, the General Secretary sighed with emotion: "Now the port management system is getting better and better. The pier is clean, tidy and modern. ”

"We must continue to promote port transformation and upgrading and resource integration" and "play a greater role in promoting coordinated regional economic development and building a modern industrial system"... Yin Yin's instructions pointed out the direction for my country's ports to cultivate new productivity based on local conditions.

The port is the starting point and fulcrum of the Maritime Silk Road. More than 2,000 years ago, the ancestors of the Chinese nation set out from the port and set sail, opening up the Maritime Silk Road connecting trade and culture between the East and the West.

Today, the story of traveling to the sea is writing a new chapter.

With the advantage of "a port connecting the world and a bridge connecting Asia and Europe", Rizhao Port is connected to more than 100 countries and regions, constantly creating new momentum for the development of the "three new" export businesses. In the first quarter of this year, Rizhao Port's "three new items" exports increased by 22% month-on-month.

Giving full play to the starting point and fulcrum role of ports and demonstrating China's inclusive attitude towards opening up has always been one of the focuses of General Secretary Xi Jinping's inspections and investigations.

In April 2017, less than a month before the first “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Summit Forum was held, General Secretary Xi Jinping inspected Tieshan Port in Beihai City, Guangxi. This port is adjacent to Hepu County, the westernmost starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Road on the coast of mainland China.

At the Tieshan Port Terminal, the General Secretary proposed building a "seaward economy" and pointed out that Beihai has the historical heritage of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. We must now write a new chapter of the Maritime Silk Road in the new century.

In November 2019, during his visit to Greece, President Xi Jinping made a special trip to the port of Piraeus, located about 10 kilometers southwest of Athens, to inspect this leading demonstration project of the China-Greece joint construction of the "Belt and Road".

"Seeing is worth hearing a hundred times. What I see here today is that the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative initiated by China is not a slogan or a legend, but a successful practice and wonderful reality." President Xi Jinping's words conveyed confidence and strength.

Today, my country's ports have established route connections with more than 200 countries and regions in the world. The routes cover coastal countries and regions that jointly build the "Belt and Road". The service network is constantly improving, and the maritime connectivity is leading the world. It continues to write the history of the Maritime Silk Road. A new chapter.

Go to the sea and prosper towards the sea. Opening the window of the port, the world will see a China that is standing at the forefront of the trend and is unswervingly promoting high-level opening up and contributing to the development of the global economy as a major country.

Visual｜Co-produced by Domestic and Shandong Branch