Wang Yi

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind put forth by President Xi Jinping. Ten years ago, to answer the questions raised by the world, by history, and by the times—“What has happened to the world, and how should we respond”—President Xi Jinping demonstrated a broad strategic vision, outstanding political wisdom and a strong sense of responsibility as leader of a major country and a big political party, and creatively put forward the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind. This initiative pointed the right direction for the world at a historical juncture, and pooled strong consensus for international cooperation amid changes and turbulence.
 
Over the past decade, with the direct planning and personal involvement of President Xi Jinping, the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind is being turned into action, spreading wide across the world. It upholds what is right in a transforming world, and inspires courage and resolve in the face of challenges and crises. The pursuit of this vision has yielded remarkable outcomes, demonstrating the strength of an epoch-making thought.
 
The vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind has been continually enriched. From state visits to multilateral summits, President Xi Jinping has systematically expounded on this important vision on multiple international occasions, and deepened the world’s understanding of it. A well-established theoretical system has been developed, which includes five goals for the world as the overall objective, humanity’s common values as the pursuit, building a new type of international relations as the fundamental pathway, the Belt and Road cooperation as the platform, and the Global Development Initiative (GDI), the Global Security Initiative (GSI) and the Global Civilization Initiative (GCI) as the important underpinning.
 
The diplomacy for building a community with a shared future for mankind has borne fruitful outcomes. At bilateral and regional as well as multilateral and global levels, China has built different forms of communities with a shared future with dozens of countries and regions. The GDI and the GSI have received the express support of over 100 countries. The GCI received warm response from multiple countries right after it was proposed. In health, climate change, cybersecurity and other areas where human society faces major challenges, President Xi Jinping has put forward China’s proposals surrounding the building of a community with a shared future, providing wisdom and input for properly addressing global challenges and improving global governance.
 
The vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind has gained wider international consensus. This vision has been written into U.N. General Assembly resolutions for seven consecutive years, and was included in many multilateral resolutions and declarations such as those of the SCO and BRICS. It has won the understanding and support of the international community, in particular developing countries. More and more countries and people have come to realize that this vision reflects the people’s call for peace, justice and progress. It creates the biggest common ground for building a beautiful world, and is of great significance for enhancing unity and cooperation among countries to create a better future for all.
 
The past decade has been a fruitful journey. What we have achieved over the past ten years has proven once again that building a community with a shared future for mankind is the right choice, one that is made based on a keen understanding of history and promotes human development. Having entered the 21st century, humanity now lives in the same global village, across the boundaries of geography, ethnicity and culture. We are increasingly becoming a community with shared interests, shared responsibilities and a shared future, where our interests and security are intertwined. Despite trade wars, the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical crises in recent years, the tide of globalization has kept surging forward amid twists and turns. The water in the vast ocean of the global economy has not been and will not be channeled back into isolated lakes and creeks. People across the world are keenly aware that amid escalating global crises, no country can stay unaffected or meet all challenges on its own. Only with unity and cooperation can countries escape the historical cycle of war and peace, rise and fall, and order and chaos.
 
Building a community with a shared future for mankind is the right direction, one that is in keeping with the trend of the times and improves global governance. Any epoch-making theory must meet the needs of the times. Outdated mentalities such as hegemonism and power politics have long been out of sync with the new realities of the 21st century. The international community has realized that to avoid a new Cold War and the clash of civilizations, theories of international relations must be updated. A community with a shared future for mankind transcends traditional theories. It calls for peace and development over conflicts and confrontation, common security over absolute security, mutual benefit over zero-sum games, exchanges and mutual learning over the clash of civilizations, and ecological conservation for the planet. This vision has created a new model in the theory of international relations and contributed China’s wisdom to reforming global governance.
 
Building a community with a shared future for mankind is integral to peaceful development and win-win cooperation. The philosophy of building such a community is inspired by traditional Chinese culture that advocates the common good and harmony among all nations. It embodies the aspiration of the Chinese nation for a better society. Right now, promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind has been incorporated into the Chinese constitution and the constitution of the CPC. It has become one of the essential elements in Chinese modernization. This means that China is committed to a modernization path different from those of traditional Western powers, and takes peaceful development as a strategic choice. In the course of building such a community, China’s development will be deeply interlinked with the common development of all countries and its own future closely intertwined with that of humanity. With its new development, China will present new opportunities to the world, inject stronger impetus and make greater contribution to peace and development for humankind.
 
The world is undergoing transformation unseen in a century. Geopolitical competition is intensifying. Cold War mentality is resurging. Hegemonic and bullying actions are causing great harm. Nontraditional security challenges of terrorism, cyber attacks, transnational crimes and biosecurity are on the rise. Humanity has once again come to a crucial crossroads. We must offer the right answer to the questions of what kind of world should be built and how to build it. The hard lessons of two hot wars and the Cold War should not be forgotten. Bloc confrontation or zero-sum games only lead to a cul-de-sac. The hope of the entire humanity lies in building a community with a shared future. A bright future will not come without us making efforts. It can only be created by us all working together.
 
We should work more closely together to bring about enduring peace. The key here is to respect sovereignty and territorial integrity, respect each other’s core interests and major concerns, and respect the development paths and social systems independently chosen by all countries. We need to practice true multilateralism, and promote greater equality and order in the process toward world multipolarity. We must say no to bloc confrontation and exclusive groups, and find a new path of engagement that prioritizes dialogue over confrontation and partnership over alliance.
 
We should create a sound environment for universal security. The key is to promote the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, settle disagreements and disputes through dialogue and consultation, take each other’s legitimate security concerns seriously, and oppose arbitrarily expanding military alliance and squeezing other countries’ security space. We should ensure security in both traditional and nontraditional domains, strengthen dialogue and cooperation in biosecurity, cybersecurity, data security and AI security, and jointly forestall risks.
 
We should boost confidence in common development. The key is to steer globalization toward the right direction, oppose decoupling, cutting supply chains and building “small yards with high fences,” reject protectionism and unilateral sanctions, and work for a just, equitable and transparent set of international economic and trade rules. We should bring development back to the center of the international agenda, and let developing countries better participate in international division of labor, to deliver more fruits of development to people of all countries more fairly. China will work with all parties to deepen Belt and Road partnerships, take Belt and Road cooperation to a new stage of high-quality development, and make relentless efforts toward the modernization of all countries.
 
We should provide impetus for mutual learning between civilizations. The key is to be clear that no civilization is superior to others and that values should not be made a political tool, still less a weapon for confrontation. We should promote the vision of equality, mutual learning, dialogue and inclusiveness between civilizations, advocate peaceful and harmonious coexistence between civilizations, and oppose hyping up narratives of “democracy versus authoritarianism” and imposing one’s own values and model upon others. We should work together for creative ways to advance human civilization, cement popular support for the growth of relations between countries, and promote understanding and amity between people of different countries.
 
We should take more actions to protect the eco-environment. The key is to promote the vision of harmony between man and nature, firmly commit to respecting nature, following its laws and protecting it, drive home the idea of green development, and work for steady progress in global ecological conservation. We should follow the path of low-carbon, circular and sustainable development, foster a fair, equitable, cooperative and win-win system of global climate governance, and jointly protect the planet we call home.
 
A just cause finds great support, and a journey with many companions gets far. The vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind embodies the ancient Chinese philosophy that all under heaven are one family and the contemporary spirit of peaceful coexistence. It points the direction for working together to advance human civilization and promote world peace and development. The white paper entitled A Global Community of Shared Future: China’s Proposals and Actions is an important document that systematically expounds on the theories and practices on building a community with a shared future for mankind, and its release is an important step in implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era and Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. China will take this as an opportunity to work with all parties to hold high the banner of a community with a shared future for mankind, and build an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world of lasting peace, universal security and shared prosperity.