International relations Archives - Page 24 of 24

Li Jingjing interviews Medea Benjamin from CODEPINK on US militarism, China’s poverty alleviation, and the New Cold War

Embedded below is a very interesting and useful interview by Li Jingjing (for CGTN) with CODEPINK co-founder Medea Benjamin. They discuss CODEPINK’s history of opposing US militarism, PBS’s shameful censoring of the documentary ‘Voices from the Frontline: China’s War on Poverty’, the China is Not Our Enemy campaign, and the dangers of a New Cold War.

Yang Jiechi on the CPC’s century of achievement in foreign affairs work

We are republishing this wide-ranging and valuable article by Yang Jiechi, Chinese politburo member and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2007 to 2013. The article describes the basic goals underlying the CPC’s foreign policy since its inception: maintaining a peaceful environment for China’s development, and contributing to a peaceful future for humanity. Yang describes the four major periods of the CPC’s foreign affairs work, and presents his vision of how China will engage in international relations in the coming period. The article originally appeared in Qiushi Journal, the leading theoretical journal of the CPC.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC). Having been founded for 100 years, this major Party is right in its prime. China is now on course to complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, thus realizing the first centenary goal. Building on this momentum, we will embark on a new journey toward the second centenary goal of fully building a modern socialist country. Around this historic point of advancing from the first centenary goal to the second one, it is of great significance that we take a thorough and systematic review of the glorious journey traveled by the Chinese people under the leadership of the Party. It will inspire the whole Party, the entire nation, and all ethnic groups to rally more closely around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, press ahead on the new journey toward a modern socialist country, and work tirelessly for realizing the Chinese dream of great national rejuvenation.

Chinese and Cuban media report on Xi Jinping phone call with Miguel Diaz-Canel

On August 30, 2021, Chinese President Xi Jinping had a phone conversation with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel. The two sides reaffirmed their strong friendship and support for each other’s path of socialist development. China-Cuba bilateral ties were described has having “become a model for cooperation between developing countries.” We reproduce below two reports of the conversation, one from CGTN and the other from Prensa Latina.

President Xi Jinping reaffirms support for Cuba no matter how the situation changes

CGTN, 30 August 2021

Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed China’s support of Cuba no matter how the situation changes during a phone conversation with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Monday.

In the phone call, Xi hailed the remarkable achievements Cuba made through relentless struggle under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC).

Quote: Hua Chunying on the reality of US militarism

From Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying’s Regular Press Conference on August 17, 2021

“Wherever the US sets foot in, be it Iraq, Syria or Afghanistan, we see turbulence, division, broken families, deaths and other scars in the mess it has left. The US power and role is destructive rather than constructive… We hope the US could make a serious reflection on its wilful military intervention and belligerent policy, stop using military and human rights as an excuse to arbitrarily interfere in other countries’ internal affairs and undermine peace and stability in other countries and regions.”

Eric Li on China’s peaceful rise

Interviewed on RT on 5 August 2021, Eric Li made an important point about how China’s emergence as a great power contrasts with the rise of Britain, the US and others, in that it has not been accompanied by bloodshed, aggression and expansionism.

China put forward this idea of a peaceful rise. This is what has happened. We went from a poor agrarian country to the great industrial powerhouse that China is today in merely two generations… Yet China hasn’t invaded a single country, not a single shot fired. That’s unprecedented in human history… That’s a great accomplishment. But instead of celebrating that accomplishment, we have this hostility from the Western powers. I find it preposterous, unfortunate and disappointing.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson denounces US sanctions against Cuba

At a Ministry of Foreign Affairs press conference on 4 August 2021, the spokesperson was asked for China’s response to the announcement by the US of new sanctions against Cuba. The response demonstrates China’s solidarity with socialist Cuba and its strict adherence to international law and the principles of non-interference, global cooperation.

Q: It is reported that on July 30, the US Treasury Department announced sanctions against Cuba’s national revolutionary police and its top two officials, citing repression of anti-government protests. During a meeting with Cuban-American figures at the White House, US President Joe Biden said that there would be more sanctions, “unless there’s some drastic change in Cuba”. In response, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said on July 30 that “these arbitrary measures, coupled with disinformation and aggression, are used to justify the inhumane blockade of Cuba”. Separately, 30 ventilators provided by the Chinese government to the Cuban government arrived in Havana on July 31. What is China’s comment?

A: China firmly opposes any move to arbitrarily impose unilateral sanctions and interfere in other countries’ internal affairs under the pretext of so-called “freedom”, “human rights” and “democracy”. The recent US sanctions against Cuban institution and officials severely violate the basic norms governing international relations and once again demonstrate to the world the typical US-style double standard and bullyism. As is known to all, it is the economic, commercial and financial embargo of the US that gravely impedes Cuba’s efforts to improve its economy and people’s livelihood, and tramples on the Cuban people’s right to subsistence and development. We urge the US to heed the universal appeal of the international community, immediately and completely lift the sanctions and embargo against Cuba, and immediately stop making excuses to engage in gross interference and destabilization.

Enough with sanctions! The right way is to support. Recently, China and many other friendly countries and international organizations have extended a helping hand to Cuba, aiding the Cuban government and people to fight the epidemic and improve people’s livelihood, illustrating that true friendship stands the test of adversity. China will continue to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, deepen China-Cuba friendly relations and firmly support Cuba’s efforts to overcome the impact of the epidemic, promote economic development and maintain social stability.

Martin Jacques: There should be an international investigation into why the West failed so disastrously containing Covid

We are republishing this important analysis by Martin Jacques, writing in Global Times, about the West’s reversion to a colonial mentality in its attitude to China.

Covid-19 arrived three years after the anti-China crusade began. From the outset the virus was infused with Cold War politics. Imagine if the first case of COVID-19 had occurred at the end of 2012 rather than the end of 2019. Many things would have been the same, but one would have been different. At the end of 2012, relations between China and the US were relatively benign; by 2019 we were in a different world. The new occupant of the White House took every opportunity to attack, denigrate and undermine China.

From January onwards a tsunami of abuse was directed at China. It was accused of secrecy and a cover-up. And to this day it has never ceased. China could do no right. It received zero compassion even when it was struggling on its own against the virus in the first three months. If this had been 2012, it would not have been like this. There would have been criticism of China, but also dialogue and cooperation. Now there was none, just abuse. COVID-19 became the symbol and bearer of a new cold war and the breakdown of the US-China relationship.

WHO probe into lab leak theory strengthens imperialism at the expense of cooperation

We are republishing this article by Friends of Socialist China co-editor Danny Haiphong, which originally appeared on CGTN, on US-led attempts to revive the ‘lab leak’ theory and where these fit into the overall pattern of international relations.

China’s opposition to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) plan to base phase-two research into the origins of COVID-19 on the lab leak theory was met with harsh criticism in the United States. Jen Psaki , White House Press Secretary for U.S. President said the administration was “deeply disappointed.” For China and much of the world, the feeling of disappointment is mutual. The proposed WHO probe into the lab leak theory threatens to strengthen the hand of imperialism at the expense of global cooperation.

Biden’s enthusiasm for “multilateralism” led some to believe that he would enhance the cause of peace. However, the Biden administration has followed a longstanding trend of imperialism in U.S. foreign policy. Since World War II, the United States has wielded economic hegemony through its disproportionate influence over multilateral organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These institutions have leveraged aid to enrich U.S. corporate shareholders and impoverish Asian, African, and Latin American nations seeking a way out of centuries of colonial underdevelopment.

The WHO has not been immune to the influence of U.S. imperialism. Direct contributions from member nations only cover about 20 percent of operating costs. That means 80 percent of the WHO’s funding comes from other, mainly private, sources; the second largest donor being the U.S.-based Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF). Critics of the WHO have cited the pressures placed on the Global South nations to privatize their health systems to the benefit of the U.S. private health sector. Donald Trump’s decision to remove the U.S. from the WHO greatly hindered the global fight against COVID-19 but did not negate the fact that the U.S. has used its influence over multilateral institutions as a form of soft power.

It is no coincidence that the WHO probe comes at the same time that Biden announced an end-of-August deadline for his own intelligence-driven probe into the lab leak theory. Biden reentered the WHO upon his first 90 days in office and has since paid back funds withheld by the Trump administration. The Biden administration views the WHO as a valuable tool in the U.S. ongoing New Cold War against China. Rather than engaging with China as equals in the fight against the pandemic, Biden has chosen to weaponize the WHO for imperialist aims.

Wang Yi: China breathes the same air and shares common destiny with developing countries

We are republishing this important speech by Foreign Minister Wang Yi, originally published on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, reiterating China’s enduring commitment to representing the voice and aspirations of the developing world.

On July 19, 2021 local time, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi answered questions on the relationship between China and developing countries when he met with the press together with Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra in Algiers.

Wang Yi said, back to 50 years ago when a resolution jointly submitted by Algeria and other countries was passed by an overwhelming majority at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, the vast number of developing countries “carried” China into the UN, which is a vivid illustration of the solidarity and cooperation between China and other developing countries. The purpose of my special visit to Algeria is to relive the experience of the joint struggle, and express my heartfelt thanks once again to Algeria and all other friends from other countries which stood up to pressure, upheld justice and firmly supported China.

China opposes any attempt to seek regime change in Syria

This article first appeared on CGTN. It provides an example of China’s principled stance in relation to the situation in Syria, in which the US and its allies have been waging proxy warfare for the last decade in an attempt to remove a government that refuses to submit to imperialist diktat.

China opposes any attempt to seek regime change in Syria and will boost cooperation with Syria for the benefit of the people of both countries, visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday.

Wang made the remarks at a meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, to whom the senior Chinese diplomat first conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping’s cordial greetings.

Under Assad’s leadership, the Syrian people have made valuable achievements in combating terrorism and opposing external interference, Wang said, adding that Assad’s re-election reflects the strong trust and support of the Syrian people.

Wang praised the Syrian people as backboned and dignified, adding that blatant foreign interventions in Syria have failed in the past and will not succeed in the future. He expressed the belief that the Syrian people will be more united and committed to the reconstruction and revitalization of their country.

Xi Jinping: Fighting Covid-19 and leading economic recovery through solidarity and cooperation

Below we reproduce the remarks made by President Xi Jinping at the Informal Economic Leaders’ Retreat of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) held on 16 July 2021. This speech highlights China’s approach to multilateralism, global cooperation, and a shared future for humanity. It stands in stark contrast to the New Cold War strategy being adopted by the US and its allies.

The Right Honorable Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern,

Dear Colleagues,

It gives me great pleasure to attend this meeting. I thank Prime Minister Ardern and the New Zealand government for their great efforts to make the meeting possible.

As we speak, the COVID-19 pandemic is undergoing many twists and turns, including the constant mutations of the virus. Controlling the pandemic still poses a difficult challenge, while global economic recovery is still on shaky ground. That said, peace and development remains the theme of our times, and the call for upholding multilateralism, strengthening solidarity and cooperation, and meeting challenges together is growing stronger than ever.

The Asia-Pacific is a major engine for global economic growth. For member economies of the Asia-Pacific, defeating COVID-19 and restoring growth at an early date are our top priority for the time being. Since the start of the pandemic, APEC members have united as one and carried out active cooperation against the coronavirus. Being the first to gain the momentum for recovery, the Asia-Pacific economy has made contributions to driving the world economy. Last year, we adopted the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040 and set ourselves the goal of an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community, charting the course for economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific. Under the current circumstances, we must enhance solidarity and cooperation to overcome the impact of the pandemic and boost global economic recovery.

First, we need to strengthen international cooperation on COVID response. The pandemic proves once again that we live in one global village, where countries stand to rise and fall together. We must stick to solidarity and cooperation as we go through this difficult time and jointly work for a healthier and brighter future for humanity. Vaccines are a powerful weapon to prevail over the pandemic and revive the economy. China has been calling for closer international cooperation on vaccines to ensure that they are accessible and affordable in developing countries and that they become a global public good. Overcoming the challenges of its own mass vaccination program, China has provided more than 500 million doses of vaccines to other developing countries, and will provide another 3 billion US dollars in international aid over the next three years to support COVID-19 response and economic and social recovery in other developing countries. China supports waiving intellectual property rights on COVID-19 vaccines, and will work with other parties to push for an early decision by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and other international institutions. China will take an active part in cooperation initiatives to keep vaccine supply chains stable and safe and support the movement of essential goods, and take effective measures to ensure healthy, safe and orderly people-to-people exchanges and restore normal business cooperation in our region at an early date. China has financed the founding of a Sub-Fund on APEC Cooperation on Combating COVID-19 and Economic Recovery, which will help APEC economies win an early victory over COVID-19 and achieve economic recovery.

Second, we need to deepen regional economic integration. Opening-up and integration is the prevailing trend. It is important that we promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment and uphold the multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core. We must remove barriers, not erect walls. We must open up, not close off. We must seek integration, not decoupling. This is the way to make economic globalization more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all. We need to step up macroeconomic policy coordination, minimize negative spillovers, and fully implement the APEC Connectivity Blueprint to promote cooperation on digital connectivity. We need to advance regional economic integration, with a view to establishing a high-standard Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific at an early date. China is among the first to ratify the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement. We look forward to its entry into force this year.

Third, we need to pursue inclusive and sustainable development. Earth is the only home for humanity. We must follow a people-centered approach, foster a sound environment to buttress sustainable economic and social development worldwide, and achieve green growth. China attaches great importance to addressing climate change. We will strive to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. China supports APEC in advancing cooperation on sustainable development, improving the List of Environmental Goods, and making energy more efficient, clean and diverse. We need to enhance economic and technological cooperation, promote inclusive trade and investment, support the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises, scale up support for women and other vulnerable groups, share experience on eliminating absolute poverty and strive to deliver the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Fourth, we need to seize opportunities from scientific and technological innovation. The digital economy is an important area for the future growth of the world economy. The global digital economy is an open and close-knit entity. Win-win cooperation is the only right way forward, while a closed-door policy, exclusion, confrontation and division would only lead to a dead end. We need to ensure full and balanced implementation of the APEC Internet and Digital Economy Roadmap, further develop digital infrastructure, facilitate the dissemination and application of new technologies, and work for a digital business environment that is open, fair and non-discriminatory. China has concluded a number of cooperation initiatives, including those on using digital technologies for the prevention and control of COVID-19 and on smart cities. We will host a workshop on digital capacity building and take forward such initiatives as bolstering the recovery of the tourism sector with digital tools, as part of our efforts to contribute more to Asia-Pacific cooperation on digital economy.

Colleagues,

China has embarked on a new journey toward fully building a modern socialist country. As China enters a new development stage, we will follow a new development philosophy and foster a new development paradigm. We will build a new system of open economy of higher standards, create a more attractive business environment, and advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. We hope to work with countries in the Asia-Pacific and beyond to achieve higher-standard mutual benefit and win-win cooperation.

There is a Maori saying in New Zealand that goes, “Turn your face to the sun and the shadows will fall behind you.” We have full confidence in humanity’s victory over the pandemic through cooperation. We have full confidence in the prospects of world economic recovery. We have full confidence in a shared, bright future of humanity. Let us stand with each other in solidarity, promote anti-COVID cooperation and economic recovery, and work for a bright future of prosperity for all in the Asia-Pacific.

Thank you.

Radhika Desai: the imperialism of human rights and the human rights of imperialism

We are republishing this useful article by Radhika Desai, first published on CGTN, about the hypocrisy of the imperialist powers in slandering China’s human rights record.

At the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), but actually before the court of Western opinion that increasingly resembles a kangaroo court, Canada repeated allegations that Chinese authorities are conducting genocide of the Muslims in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Without evidence, it claimed to be speaking for some 44 Western countries, their allies and clients (though Ukraine later withdrew) against the opposition of 65 countries.

These allegations are part of the West’s imperialism of human rights – the imposition of economic and political subordination on Third World countries in the name of promoting human rights there. Western countries have long justified their imperialism – of direct colonialism or indirect influence on the ruling and political classes of Third World countries – through hypocritical discourses.

During the 19th century, they were openly racist, speaking of the “White Men’s Burden” and his mission to civilize the rest of the world. In the mid-20th century, amid decolonization, racism was unaffordable and the favored discourse was of development. In the post-Cold War period, it has been democracy and human rights.

However, as the West’s imperial power wanes, it becomes more and more difficult to square this imperialism of human rights with the actual human rights of imperialism. Far from being exemplars of human rights, the imperialist Western countries have been the principal violators of human rights in the world.

Just consider Canada. Even as the Canadian parliament voted unanimously that China was committing genocide in Xinjiang and its representative at the UNHRC was repeating these false allegations, the centuries-long struggle of Indigenous peoples displaced by Canada for their land, their rights and their sovereignty entered a new phase.

In late May, the Tk’emlups te Secwépemc people announced that they had discovered unmarked graves of 215 children on the grounds of the Kamloops Indian Residential School run by the Catholic Church and funded by the Federal government.

For decades, indigenous children, separated from their families at tender ages, suffered physical and sexual abuse, malnutrition (often deliberate as part of experiments) and a systematic program to de-culture them, to “take the Indian out of the child.”

The 2015 Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), made possible by centuries of struggle against the Canadian settler state, concluded that what went on in these schools amounted to “cultural genocide.” With the discovery of the unmarked graves, people realize the first word was always redundant.

Most other indigenous nations are now combing residential school grounds in their area with ground-penetrating radar. 751 more unmarked graves were discovered at the Cowessess First Nation in southeast Saskatchewan on June 27. Without doubt there will be many more.

Sacred and secular authorities are now passing responsibility back and forth, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says “sorry” and demands that Pope Francis do the same and the Catholic Church responds that it had run these institutions at the behest of the Canadian state.

To those pointing to the hypocrisy of the allegations of an unproven genocide in China when a new and macabre dimension of the actual genocide at home is being uncovered, Trudeau says at least Canada acknowledges its genocide.

Does it? The TRC focused only on residential schools, leaving out the multitude of other wrongs of centuries of settler colonialism. We can enumerate land dispossession, treaty violations, the seizure of children by state bureaucracies, routine racism from the public, government officials, police and health providers, inadequate food, housing and schooling, boiled water advisories, social dislocation and distress, disproportionate incarceration of indigenous people, hundreds of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.

However, that a very far from complete list. Moreover, the TRC was not authorized to conclude genocide and implicate the Canadian government legally, hence its lesser conclusion of “cultural genocide”.

Moreover, in keeping with the political style of Western capitalist countries, these violated human rights of imperialism will be at best acknowledged symbolically and then too partially and definitely not redressed materially.

After all, the chief function of capitalist states like Canada is to project the power of their capitalist classes and protect their property rights. Most ordinary citizens have to struggle long and hard to be heard at all, then only faintly and distortedly.

Moreover, the property rights the Canadian state protects most tenderly are those of their extractivist capitalist classes based on mining and agriculture over land, precisely that which is at the heart of the violation of indigenous people’s rights. Canada will have to cease to be the extractivist, settler-colonial capitalist state it is before the genocide of indigenous people and peoples can end and their land, sovereignty and rights restored.

Meanwhile, the violated human rights of imperialism in the rest of the world must await discussion another time.

The West shouldn’t misreport President Xi’s speech on CPC’s centenary

This article by Radhika Desai (Professor of Political Studies at the University of Manitoba and director of the Geopolitical Economy Research Group) first appeared on CGTN on 6 July 2021.

What a difference a quarter century makes! Back in the 1990s, when Bill Clinton was U.S. president, his administration was “engaging” with China and claiming that once China opened further to U.S. trade and investment, it would also “import democracy.” Today, most Western media could not be more hostile. This is clear from their coverage of President Xi’s speech at the centenary celebrations of the Communist Party of China (CPC). They focused on two quotes in a travesty of reportage.

Many of the platforms and outlets most deeply committed to waging a new Cold War against China, claiming to support “human rights” and “democracy” against “authoritarianism” and “repression,” busied themselves with exploiting the difference between the literal and the normal and metaphorical interpretation of a four-character phrase the president used.

Giving no quarter to the metaphorical nature of the Chinese language, many Western outlets translated the four characters, “head breaks, blood flows,” normally used to describe a range of things form a minor mishap to various more serious events, to make grotesque construals. The BBC was typical. It claimed President Xi had said, “Anyone who dares try to do that will have their heads bashed bloody against the Great Wall of Steel forged by over 1.4 billion Chinese people.”

Of course, the West’s uneasy conscience about China was also on full display with rival outlets, attached to powers interested in continuing business with China, being more sedate. Of course, they were, in turn accused by their Cold Warrior rivals of being too kind to China for business reasons.

President Xi’s warning to those who would mount high horses to moralize and sermonize to China was the other part of his speech to be headlined, “We are also eager to learn what lessons we can from the achievements of other cultures, and welcome helpful suggestions and constructive criticism. We will not, however, accept sanctimonious preaching from those who feel they have the right to lecture us.”

The quotation of this part of the president’s speech went along with references to Western criticisms of its human rights record, particularly in Hong Kong.

The change in the West’s attitude over the past quarter century is entirely explained by its own mistaken assumptions. When Clinton claimed Western engagement with China would make it more democratic, he actually meant it would make it capitalist. Of course, when a less powerful nation turns capitalist, it becomes subservient to the capitalists of the imperial West, particularly the United States.

All the problems for the West arose from the fact that this did not happen. China’s leaders realized soon, if they did not always know it, that the unrestrained “opening up” the West desired was different from what they envisaged; not just by degree but they were polar opposites. What China wanted was a cooperative, mutually beneficial opening. What the West wanted was China’s subordination to itself, much like many Third World countries or, for a time, post-Soviet Russia.

If it had happened, it would have constituted complete subordination to a capitalist U.S. and West at a time when they were becoming less and less economically dynamic and more and more plundering, speculative and rentier.

China’s refusal to cooperate in such subordination became clear to the ever more embattled governments of the U.S. in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Since then, U.S. attitudes began hardening. They started resorting to the sort of language the U.S. reserves for its enemies – the language hurled against “dictators,” “suppressing humans rights” and “killing their own people.”

Of course, such rhetoric disregards many things. It is unmindful of the capitalist class rule their own merely liberal democracies are designed to perpetuate. It ignores the violations of human rights of women, Indigenous peoples, racial and ethnic minorities that are increasingly routine. It shrugs off the fact that Western governments not only have the blood of thousands of “their own people” on their hands but also of millions of “other people’s people” in its long history of imperialism.

President Xi recalled the “intense humiliation” China suffered for a century before the CPC triumphed against imperialism. The CPC would lose its raison d’etre if it capitulated to it again.

The CPC leadership has not permitted this. That is why it has lived to celebrate its centenary. That is also why it is the target of the West’s hysterical attacks. It should just shrug them off. Its true masters are the people of China. While they undoubtedly wish relations with the West were better, they can withstand and resist Western imperial aggression, as President Xi noted.

Declaration of the launch of the ‘Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations’

We are republishing the announcement of this important step taken by Algeria, Angola, Belarus, Bolivia, Cambodia, China, Cuba, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Iran, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nicaragua, the State of Palestine, Russia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Syria, and Venezuela, launching the ‘Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations’. We believe this launch marks a significant step forward in the shared struggle of the peoples of the world towards a multipolar future.

We, representatives of Algeria, Angola, Belarus, Bolivia, Cambodia, China, Cuba, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Iran, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nicaragua, the State of Palestine, Russia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Syria, and Venezuela to the United Nations, are pleased to announce the official launch and establishment of the “Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations”.

We seize this opportunity to reaffirm that the Charter of the United Nations and its purposes and principles remain timeless, universal, and that they are all indispensable for preserving and promoting international peace and security, the rule of law, economic development and social progress, as well as all human rights for all. Similarly, upholding the Charter of the United Nations is fundamental for ensuring both the realization of the three pillars of the Organization and fulfillment of the yearnings of our peoples, which will ultimately benefit our common efforts to address the complex and emerging challenges and threats faced by humanity and to establish a peaceful and prosperous world and a just and equitable world order.

We renew our commitment to the defense of the Charter of the United Nations, which constitutes not only a milestone and a true act of faith that still today fills us with hope on the best of humanity, bringing us together to ensure the common wellbeing of present and future generations, but also with that code of conduct that has ruled international relations between States for the past 75 years, on the basis of, among others, principles such as the sovereign equality of States – large and small –, the right to self-determination, non-interference in the internal affairs of States, and the respect for the territorial integrity and political independence of all nations.

We reaffirm our determination to fulfill our promise with “We the Peoples of the United Nations”, as well as our pledge of leaving no one behind, while stressing the need to ensure the prevalence of legality over force. In this regard, we vow to spare no effort in preserving, promoting and defending at every relevant fora the prevalence and validity of the Charter of the United Nations, which, in the current international juncture, has a renewed and even more important value and relevance. We also underscore the need to avoid selective approaches and call for the full compliance with and strict adherence to both the letter and spirit of the tenets contained in the Charter of the United Nations, which are at the core of multilateralism and serve as the basis for modern day international law. We further stress that abiding in an effective manner by the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations fosters peaceful and friendly relations and cooperation amongst States and ultimately ensures international peace and security.

We invite those members of the international community that are committed with an effective and inclusive multilateralism, with the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, and with the values of dialogue, tolerance and solidarity, to consider joining the Group of Friends at their earliest convenience, as we continue to work together in advancing our common agenda.

New York, 6 July 2021

Xi Jinping: Strengthening Cooperation Among Political Parties to Jointly Pursue the People’s Wellbeing

This keynote address by president Xi Jinping, delivered at the CPC and World Political Parties Summit on 6 July 2021, succinctly expresses China’s vision of multilateralism and multipolarity: working together with all countries to shape a shared future for humanity. The English translation was originally published on Xinhua.

Your Excellencies leaders of political parties,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends,

It gives me great pleasure to join you, leaders of more than 500 political parties, political and other organisations from over 160 countries as well as the ten thousand and more representatives of political parties and various circles, at this cloud event to discuss the important question of “working for the people’s wellbeing and the responsibility of political parties”, just as the Communist Party of China (CPC) reaches its one hundredth anniversary. Over the past weeks, more than 600 political parties, political and other organisations from over 170 countries have sent 1500-plus congratulatory messages and letters on the CPC’s centenary conveying their goodwill and best wishes. I wish to take this opportunity to express to all of you, on behalf of the Communist Party of China, our heartfelt thanks!

A few days ago, we celebrated the CPC’s centenary with a grand gathering. Over the past hundred years, the CPC has united and led the Chinese people in working ceaselessly towards the tremendous transformation of the Chinese nation from standing up and growing prosperous to becoming strong. Over the past hundred years, the CPC has persisted in closely associating the future of the Chinese people with that of other peoples of the world and steered the course of China’s development amid the general trend of the world and the currents of the times to promote common development and prosperity of all countries.

The historic achievements the CPC and the Chinese people have made would not have been possible without the generous support of world peoples.

Here, on behalf of the CPC and the Chinese people, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to political parties, peoples and friends of all countries who have cared about, supported and helped the CPC and the cause of revolution, development and reform in China.

China stands on the side of the developing world

Foreign Minister Wang Yi on 25 June 2021:

In the five decades since joining the United Nations, China has upheld the legitimate rights and interests of fellow developing countries and spoken up for the developing world. Past, present and in the future, China always stands together with developing countries. China’s vote in the United Nations is always for the well-being of developing countries and for justice in the world.

China and the US: contrasting visions for humanity

With US President Joe Biden using the recent G7 and NATO summits to promote US hegemony and the New Cold War, it’s worth reflecting on the contrasting models of international relations proposed by the US and China.

Why the CPC’s foreign policy is crucial not only for China but for humanity

We are pleased to republish this article by John Ross, Senior Fellow at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China, which originally appeared in English on Learning from China on 11 June 2021.

The 100^th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) comes as not only China but humanity faces a fundamental crossroads – as will be seen this is not a rhetorical exaggeration but a literal reality. On the one hand, with the CPC’s leadership, China’s national rejuvenation has proceeded at an unprecedented pace. Taking simply the economic dimension of this, in 1949 China was almost the world’s poorest country – only two Asian and eight African countries had lower per capita GDPs than China.[i] By 2020 China had not only eliminated absolute poverty and achieved “moderate prosperity” by its own domestic criterion, but it was on the brink of becoming a “high-income economy” by international World Bank standard. For a major country to go in only just over 70 years, a single lifetime, from such poverty to a high-income economy is historically unparalleled.

But simultaneously various international forces are attempting to block China’s development – as seen graphically in the new “cold war” launched against China by powerful US circles. And the international context is that humanity today faces a series of great crises which will inevitably affect billions of people – and the worst of which are capable of eliminating a large part of humanity.

Neither China, nor any other individual country, can by themselves escape the consequences of this. Scientists estimate that well within a decade decisive action must be taken to deal with climate change or humanity faces uncontrollable risks which at a minimum would gravely affect the condition of life of billions of people and in the most extreme developments would gravely threaten human civilization. The threat of nuclear war, devastating human civilisation, still exists. In the shorter term, internationally the Covid19 pandemic is not under control and, in addition to its large-scale loss of life globally, this has produced the greatest international economic downturn since the Great Depression – the World Bank estimates this will push around 100 million people into poverty globally and hundreds of millions will suffer falls in incomes or loss of jobs.

Xi Jinping has repeatedly underlined the inevitable interrelation of China’s domestic situation with this international context in referring to: “this global village of ours, where countries’ interests and future are so interconnected.”[ii] Therefore, from the positive angle: “The Chinese people are well aware that China’s development has benefited from the international community.” [iii] The reverse equally applies – China would be unable to escape the consequences of serious adverse international developments. China’s interaction with the rest of the world, its foreign policy, is therefore of critical importance both globally and for China’s own progress.

In this situation China’s foreign policy shows the continuing development of the CPC. As will be analysed, the CPC’s concept of a community of “common destiny for humanity” is fundamental for dealing with the critical challenges of the coming period of international relations. That this foundation of China’s foreign policy is both based in Marxism, but is also a development of it, shows the dynamic and creativity of the CPC itself.

Xi Jinping quote on multipolarity

The G7 is meeting with a shared vision of “market democracies” setting the rules of international relations. What this means in reality is the continuation of US-led imperialism. In contrast, China proposes a multipolar world where every country can choose its development path. This is explained by the following quote from Xi Jinping.

Keeping up with the times, one can not live in the 21st century while thinking the old fashion, lingering in the age of colonial expansion or with a zero-sum mentality of the Cold War.
In the face of the profoundly changed international landscape and the objective need for the world to rally closely together like passengers in the same boat, all countries should join hands in building a new type of international relations featuring cooperation and mutual benefit, and all peoples should work together to safeguard world peace and promote common development.
We stand for the sharing of dignity by all countries and peoples in the world. All countries, irrespective of size, strength and wealth, are equal. The right of the people to independently choose their development paths should be respected, interference in the internal affairs of other countries opposed and international fairness and justice maintained. Only the wearer of the shoes knows if they fit or not. Only the people can best tell if the development path they have chosen for their country suits or not.
We stand for the sharing of the fruits of development by all countries and peoples in the world. Every country, while pursuing its own development, should actively facilitate the common development of all countries. There can not be an enduring development in the world when some countries are getting richer and richer while others languishing in prolonged poverty and backwardness. Only when all countries achieve common development can there be better development in the world. Such practices as beggaring-thy-neighbor, shifting crisis on others and feathering one’s nest at the expense of others are both immoral and unsustainable.
Xi Jinping, Follow the Trend of the Times and Promote Peace and Development in the World, 2013