Bosom friends afar make distance disappear. The Maritime Silk Road (Quanzhou) International Forum on Judicial Cooperation (2023) kicked off in Quanzhou, Fujian province, on the morning of Oct 26. Zhang Jun, chief justice of the People's Republic of China and president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), attended and addressed the opening ceremony. Zhou Zuyi, secretary of the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee and chairman of the Standing Committee of the Fujian Provincial People's Congress, delivered remarks.

Since the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed by President Xi Jinping 10 years ago, the circle of friends of the Belt and Road has continued to expand, with a growing number of reliable partners, improving quality of cooperation, and promising development prospects. It has become the broadest and largest platform for international cooperation across the world. Not long ago, President Xi attended and delivered a keynote speech at the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. He announced eight major steps China will take to support the joint pursuit of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and, together with leaders of participating countries, drew a new blueprint for the development of the Belt and Road and outlined a new vision for the joint efforts on high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

The joint pursuit of Belt and Road cooperation cannot be achieved without the guarantee of the rule of law. "If people are of one heart, even yellow earth can become gold. As long as we are on the same page, unite in a concerted effort, and forge ahead hand in hand with mutual support, we will surely be able to leverage the power of justice to create more golden miracles under the Belt and Road Initiative framework." Focusing on jointly building the Maritime Silk Road and promoting high-quality judicial cooperation, Zhang Jun put forward three proposals. Jointly maintaining a peaceful and stable environment for development. It is important to uphold the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, extensively gather judicial consensus and strength, and give full play to the role of the judiciary in settling international conflicts and disputes, in a bid to collectively defend the sincere aspirations of people of all countries for peace, development, fairness and justice. Jointly promoting exchanges and mutual learning among judicial civilizations. It is important to thoroughly share each other's judicial experiences and let civilizations flourish through exchanges and be enriched through mutual learning, so as to collectively inject new vitality into the development and advancement of the world's civilization of the rule of law. Jointly expanding the outcomes of win-win cooperation. It is important to fulfill the principles of "extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits", continue to expand the fruits of cooperation, and enhance the practicability of cooperation, in order to collectively safeguard regional peace and stability, propel economic and social development, and improve the wellbeing of people in all countries.

In his remarks, Zhou pinpointed that the keynote speech delivered by President Xi at the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation has injected strong impetus into our judicial cooperation alongside the Maritime Silk Road. As the hub of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, in recent years, Fujian has made great endeavors to build the Maritime Silk Road Central Legal Service Zone, create a top-class law-based business environment, and develop a legal innovation cluster and a first-rate legal service highland. An international platform has been initially established for legal exchanges and cooperation to serve the Belt and Road Initiative. Firmly bearing the Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law in mind, we will take this event as an opportunity to learn from the good practices of various countries in the judicial field, actively align with international high-standard economic and trade rules, provide better foreign-related legal services, strengthen international judicial exchanges and cooperation, promote the interconnectivity of legal resources, and strive to build a highland of the rule of law in China's southeastern coastal area, so as to contribute more wisdom and legal strength to high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

Later on, Zhang delivered a keynote speech. He noted that Chinese courts will, under the guidance of the Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and committed to the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy and the Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, concentrate on justice and efficiency, continue to deepen judicial exchanges and cooperation with Belt and Road countries, and offer high-quality legal services for high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. Chinese courts stand ready to work with all parties to carry out close communication and cooperation in conducting criminal judicial assistance and combating cross-border crimes, so as to foster a safe and stable social environment. Chinese courts will strictly abide by international conventions, respect international practices, fulfill international obligations, uphold the principle of equal protection, and properly handle cases related to the Belt and Road Initiative in accordance with the law, so as to create a fair and orderly market environment. Chinese courts will practice the concept of green development, promote cooperation in green infrastructure, green energy, green transportation, and green finance and engage in global environmental governance, so as to create a beautiful and livable eco-environment. Chinese courts will pursue extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and improve cooperation mechanisms for judicial assistance, case study, and the application of law, so as to render a fair and efficient legal environment. Chinese courts will adhere to the innovation-driven development strategy, deepen research on internet judicial rules and cooperation in global governance, and share achievements and experiences of the informatization of courts, so as to shape a convenient and intelligent service environment.

The opening ceremony was also addressed by Rebeca Lizette Ráquel Obando, president of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Honduras; Muhammad Syarifuddin, chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia; and Zamirbek Bazarbekov, chairman of the Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Also in attendance were legal and judicial professionals and diplomatic envoys to China from the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Hellenic Republic, the Republic of Honduras, the Republic of Indonesia, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, the State of Qatar, the Independent State of Samoa, the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

The opening ceremony was presided over by Tao Kaiyuan, justice of the second rank and vice-president of the SPC. Other attendees include: Wu Xielin, member of the Standing Committee and secretary-general of the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee; Huang Haikun, member of the Standing Committee and secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee of the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee; Yang Wanming, justice of the second rank and vice-president of the SPC; Jin Yinqiang, president of the High People’s Court of Fujian Province; Zhang Haibo, president of the High People's Court of Guangdong Province; Zhang Yigong, secretary of the CPC Quanzhou Municipal Committee; Fang Huajuan, Wu Jinbi, Zeng Xuqing and Cai Jinchai, deputies to the National People's Congress; Lin Xiaofa and Xu Xipeng, members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; officials from the SPC, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and relevant authorities of Fujian and Quanzhou as well as representatives from some courts of Fujian.