The 3rd International Summit on the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) and its applications kicked off Thursday in Zhuzhou City of in central China's Hunan Province, as authorities aim to boost the industry by expanding the use of satellite networks and strengthening international cooperation.
The two-day summit has attracted more than 1,800 Chinese and international researchers, entrepreneurs and officials. Exhibitors have also set up booths to showcase BDS use in various sectors, including smart logistics and intelligent transportation.
BDS services and related products have been exported to more than 130 countries, providing users with diversified choices and better application experience and promoting industrial development, according to a bluebook on the development of the BeiDou network, which was released during the opening ceremony of the summit.
China's BDS program was initiated in 1994 with the construction of BDS-1 and BDS-2 completed in 2000 and 2012, respectively. When BDS-3 was completed and put into service on July 31, 2020, China became the third country in the world to have an independent global navigation satellite system.
According to the White Paper on the Development of China's Satellite Navigation and Location Services Industry (2024), the total value of China's satellite navigation and location services industry reached 536.2 billion yuan (about 75.2 billion U.S. dollars) in 2023, an increase of 7.09 percent over the previous year.
China hosts summit to boost use of homegrown BeiDou navigation system
In an increasingly divided world marked by conflict and uncertainty, experts at the Global Strategic Dialog 2024, held in Beijing on Thursday, are calling for enhanced dialogue and cooperation among nations to foster global economic stability and peaceful development
At the event, experts from China, Russia, the United States, Japan and beyond gathered to discuss the evolving role of major powers in guaranteeing global stability.
Gao Xiang, president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said in his opening remarks that Beijing remains committed to cooperating with all parties to protect peace and continue building an open world economy, especially amid growing challenges to globalization.
Many participants echoed the need for major powers to take responsibility in addressing current global challenges, while also acknowledging China's role in global governance.
"A lot of these conflicts have been mismanaged, mishandled by the great powers, and particularly the United States have a responsibility to cool down those conflicts. And for that, it needs the cooperation. China has a major role to play because of its economic clout, because of its influence to try to find ways for achieving peace. And the major powers like China, United States, Russia, India, European Union, they have to engage in dialogue to resolve the problems like Ukraine and Gaza and other problems," said Amitav Acharya, former president of the International Studies Association.
"I think that China, together with Russia, as permanent UN council security members, can do a lot in terms of creating an international security agenda. And the logic of development of new international institutions, like BRICS, like Shanghai Cooperation Organization, can give a significant boost for development of more stable, more secure, and more multilateral and inclusive international order," said Fedor Voytolovskiy, director of the Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations at the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Experts call for cooperation among major countries amid global turmoil
