Multipolarity Archives - Page 2 of 10 - Friends of Socialist China

BRICS countries seek common stand on ‘tariff wars’

On the evening of September 8, 2025, (Beijing Time) Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a Virtual Summit of the ten full members of the BRICS cooperation mechanism and delivered a speech entitled “Forging Ahead in Solidarity and Cooperation.”

The summit was convened and chaired by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, whose country holds the current rotating Chair of BRICS. Lula’s initiative was largely triggered by the economic, political and psychological warfare currently being waged by the US Trump administration against many BRICS members, including Brazil, South Africa, India, Russia and China. Besides Presidents Xi and Lula, it was also attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Khaled bin Mohamed representing the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the representatives of India and Ethiopia. India was represented by Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, with the absence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi being widely interpreted as indicating his continued vacillation between the interests of the Global South and those of the imperialist camp headed by the United States.

In his speech, President Xi noted that transformation unseen in a century is accelerating across the world. Hegemonism, unilateralism, and protectionism are getting more and more rampant. BRICS countries, standing at the forefront of the Global South, should act on the BRICS Spirit of openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation, jointly defend multilateralism and the multilateral trading system, advance greater BRICS cooperation, and build a community with a shared future for humanity.

To this end, President Xi made three proposals:

Upholding multilateralism to defend international fairness and justice. Multilateralism is the shared aspiration of the people and the overarching trend of our time. It provides an important underpinning for world peace and development. The Global Governance Initiative that President Xi recently proposed is aimed at galvanising joint global action for a more just and equitable system. Active efforts should be made to promote greater democracy in international relations and increase the representation and voice of Global South countries.

Upholding openness and win-win cooperation to safeguard the international economic and trade order. BRICS countries should promote a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalisation, place development at the heart of the international agenda, and ensure that Global South countries participate in international cooperation as equals and share in the fruits of development.

Upholding solidarity and cooperation to foster synergy for common development. BRICS countries account for nearly half of the world’s population, around 30 percent of global economic output, and one-fifth of global trade. The more closely they work together, the more resilient, resourceful and effective they are in addressing external risks and challenges.

Other participating leaders said that unilateralist and bullying acts are disrupting the international order, international law and international rules are under threat, and trade is being used as a tool to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs, which severely jeopardises world peace and development. BRICS countries need to strengthen solidarity and collaboration, jointly respond to crises and challenges, safeguard multilateralism, uphold the international system of free and open trade, and protect the common interests of the Global South.

The Bloomberg financial news service further reported Lula as stating that, “Tariff blackmail is being normalised as an instrument to seize markets and interfere in domestic affairs… Our countries have become victims of unjustified and illegal trade practices.”

Calling for unity, he added: “It is up to BRICS to show that cooperation overcomes any form of rivalry. We have the necessary legitimacy to lead the renewal of the multilateral trading system on modern, flexible foundations geared to our development needs.”

South African President Ramaphosa said developing nations are facing “great hardships and danger” and that South Africa has already experienced negative economic effects from the trade upheaval. He called on BRICS to “play a critical role in strengthening the multilateral system.”

The following articles were originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The Silk Road Tango: Can the elephant and dragon share one stage?

In the following article, Mayukh Biswas argues that India and China, in spite of ongoing tensions, have deep historical, cultural, and economic ties that position them as key actors in reshaping the global order, with much to gain from friendship and cooperation.

The article opens by noting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s embrace of Trump and the US’s long-term strategy to leverage India against China. The US side disrupted this process recently by imposing punitive tariffs on Indian imports, thereby exposing the limits of US–India alignment.

Globally, Mayukh situates India–China relations within wider shifts: Brazil’s leftward turn under Lula, Africa’s escalating resistance to neo-colonialism, and growing anger around the world at Western sanctions and militarism. BRICS and the other institutions of an emerging multipolarity offer a counterweight to US hegemony.

Tracing two millennia of exchange, the author highlights how Buddhism, science, mathematics, art, and trade linked India and China peacefully. From the Bandung Conference and Panchsheela to today’s BRICS, cooperation between the two countries has also made an important contribution to the construction of the Global South.

Yet political contradictions remain. The BJP’s ideological base fuels anti-China rhetoric, while Western powers exploit tensions through forums like the Quad, seeking to draw India into the US-led strategy of China containment. Despite this, India and China share overlapping interests: strengthening the Global South, addressing climate change, and resisting Western dominance.

Mayukh concludes that the “elephant and dragon” should choose the path of greater cooperation, helping to guide a more multipolar and peaceful global future.

Colonial “divide and rule” only breeds conflict. Long before Europe’s rise, India and China traded and exchanged culture. In the 21st century, this cooperation is vital for global peace.

Mayukh Biswas is former All India General Secretary of the Students’ Federation of India, current Communist Party of India (Marxist) West Bengal state committee member, and a researcher in International Relations at Jadavpur University.

The Modi government had left no stone unturned in praising Trump – from “Namaste Trump” to “Howdy Modi.” Not long ago, far-right Hindutva groups celebrated Trump’s birthday and even performed rituals for his victory. But despite all the theatrics, Trump has imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods, the highest in Asia. This import duty, applied as “punishment” for buying cheap oil from Russia, will severely impact India’s leather, textiles, IT, and agriculture sectors, risking millions of jobs.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is the ideological lodestar of the ruling BJP, had supported Trump’s anti-Muslim policies, seeing his divisive moves align with their communal agenda; they thought Trump was their ‘long-lost brother.’ Now, Modi is in a deep dilemma. Meanwhile, despite their cold relations, China has made its stance clear. Chinese Ambassador Zhu Feihong tweeted in support of New Delhi: “Give the bully an inch, he will take a mile.” He highlighted how the U.S. weaponizes tariffs, violating UN and WTO rules to suppress other nations, destabilizing the world.

Putin: Russia and China are united in our vision of building a just, multipolar world order, with a focus on the nations of the Global Majority

We are pleased to republish below the full text of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interview with Xinhua News Agency, conducted on the eve of his visit to China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Tianjin Summit and the commemorations in Beijing for the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression.

The interview touches on a wide range of important issues, including Russia-China relations, the global balance of power, the significance of the SCO, and the lessons to be learned from the Second World War.

On the issue of the Global Anti-Fascist War, Putin notes:

The peoples of the Soviet Union and China bore the brunt of the fighting and suffered the heaviest losses. It was our citizens who endured the greatest hardships in the struggle against the invaders and played a decisive role in defeating Nazism and militarism. Through those severe trials, the finest traditions of friendship and mutual assistance were forged and strengthened – traditions that today form a solid foundation for Russian–Chinese relations.

I would remind you that even before the full-scale outbreak of the Second World War, in the 1930s, when Japan treacherously launched a war of aggression against China, the Soviet Union extended a helping hand to the Chinese people. Thousands of our career officers served as military advisers, assisting in strengthening the Chinese army and providing guidance in combat operations. Soviet pilots also fought bravely alongside their Chinese brothers-in-arms.

He adds:

The historical record leaves no doubt as to the scale and ferocity of those battles. We remember the great significance of the famous Hundred Regiments Offensive, when Chinese Communist forces liberated a territory with a population of five million from Japanese occupation. We also recall the unparalleled feats of Soviet troops and commanders in their clashes with Japan at Lake Khasan and the Khalkhin Gol River. In the summer of 1939, our legendary commander Georgy Zhukov won his first major victory in the Mongolian steppes, which in effect foreshadowed the later defeat of the Berlin–Tokyo–Rome Axis. In 1945, the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation played a decisive role in liberating northeast China, dramatically altering the situation in the Far East and making the capitulation of militarist Japan inevitable.

And, correctly remembering the crucial role played by China in the defeat of fascism and militarism and the birth of the modern international order, he states:

In Russia, we will never forget that China’s heroic resistance was one of the crucial factors that prevented Japan from stabbing the Soviet Union in the back during the darkest months of 1941–1942. This enabled the Red Army to concentrate its efforts on crushing Nazism and liberating Europe. Close cooperation between our two countries was also an important element in forming the anti-Hitler coalition, strengthening China as a great power, and in the constructive discussions that shaped the post-war settlement and helped to reinvigorate the anti-colonial movement.

Putin observes that, in the West, there are ceaseless attempts to rewrite the history of the Second World War, to downplay the role of the Soviet Union and China in the victory over fascism, and to whitewash the crimes of fascism and militarism. “Historical truth is being distorted and suppressed to suit their current political agendas. Japanese militarism is being revived under the pretext of imaginary Russian or Chinese threats, while in Europe, including Germany, steps are being taken towards the re-militarisation of the continent, with little regard for historical parallels.”

China’s victory in the war against Japanese aggression inspired the oppressed people of the Global South

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei has stated that the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was the first complete victory in China’s modern national liberation struggle and added that this greatly inspired the people of colonised and semi-colonised countries around the world that had suffered from aggression and oppression.

He was speaking at an August 28 press conference where he introduced the 26 heads of state or government who will attend Beijing’s September 3 commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War at the invitation of President Xi Jinping.

Responding to a comment regarding the heavy representation of leaders from the Global South, Hong added that China’s victory had given the oppressed nations confidence and courage to fight for national independence and liberation and had exerted a profound influence on their eventual triumph.

Eighty years later, the era when a handful of countries dominated the destinies of others, monopolised international affairs and held exclusive advantages in development has become a thing of the past. The collective rise of the Global South is fundamentally reshaping the global landscape. No longer the “silent majority” or a “vast backward bloc,” the Global South now represents an awakened new force and new source of hope in changes unseen in a century, Hong noted. The following article was originally published by Global Times.

When asked to comment that among the foreign guests and dignitaries attending China’s V-Day commemorations in Beijing, many are leaders from Global South countries, Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei stated that the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was the first complete victory in China’s modern national liberation struggle, greatly inspiring colonized and semi-colonized countries around the world that had suffered from aggression and oppression.

It gave them the confidence and courage to fight for national independence and liberation, exerting a profound influence on their eventual triumph, said Hong.

Eighty years later, the era when a handful of countries dominated the destinies of others, monopolized international affairs and held exclusive advantages in development has become a thing of the past. The collective rise of the Global South is fundamentally reshaping the global landscape.

Over the past 40 years, the share of Global South countries in global GDP has risen from 24 percent to over 40 percent, and in the past 20 years they have contributed as much as 80 percent of global economic growth. Increasingly, Global South countries are hosting BRICS, APEC and G20 summits, making their voices heard and leaving a clear imprint, said Hong.

No longer the “silent majority” or a “vast backward bloc,” the Global South now represents an awakened new force and new source of hope in changes unseen in a century, Hong noted.

More than 80 years ago, in that life-and-death struggle between justice and evil, peace-loving people around the world united to form a broad anti-fascist front, defeating brutal aggressors, creating world peace and laying an important foundation for the postwar international order. Today, China stands ready to work together with Global South countries and others to promote a more equal and orderly multipolar world, advance inclusive and beneficial economic globalization and jointly contribute to the just cause of world peace, development and progress, Hong said.

Beyond victory: Rethinking WWII’s legacy in a fractured world

We are pleased to publish below an original article by Wu Yanni, a Beijing-based political commentator and contributor to Chinese and international media, arguing that the lessons of World War II remain relevant – and indeed urgent – in today’s geopolitical context.

Marking the 80th anniversary of the victory over fascism and the founding of the United Nations, Wu stresses that the war’s devastation—100 million casualties worldwide, including 35 million Chinese lives—is a sobering reminder that militarism “leads not to greatness, but to ruin.” For China, the 14-year resistance against Japan became both a struggle for survival and part of the foundation of its modern nationhood.

A central theme is the danger of selective memory. Wu critiques attempts in Japan to downplay atrocities such as the Nanjing Massacre or Unit 731, a secret research facility in Heilongjiang, northeast China, where criminal and inhumane experiments were carried out on Chinese, Russian, Korean and other prisoners. Globally, she warns, invoking distorted history to justify present-day militarism and aggression undermines the spirit of the UN Charter and runs counter to the multipolar trend.

The article highlights the overlooked role of the Global South in the war: India’s 2.5 million volunteer soldiers, African and Latin American contributions, and Brazil’s combat role. These experiences have been marginalised and largely ignored in Western historical accounts. Wu writes:

As soldiers returned home, many questioned why they had fought for freedom abroad while being denied basic rights at home. From Vietnam to Ghana to Indonesia, national liberation movements accelerated. The 1955 Bandung Conference, where newly independent nations charted a path toward nonalignment and sovereignty, marked a turning point.

Today, however, “the Global South is no longer a silent object of history. From BRICS cooperation to African-led development frameworks and Latin American regionalism, formerly marginalised voices are demanding a say in shaping global rules.”

Wu Yanni concludes by recounting China’s peaceful rise and its consistent orientation towards inclusive development and multilateral cooperation. As such, China is helping to truly apply the lessons of WWII, “building a future where peace is sustained not by dominance but by cooperation, equity, and respect”.

War and peace have always shaped the trajectory of human civilization. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the broader World Anti-Fascist War, as well as the founding of the United Nations.

Eighty years ago, nations came together in the wake of unprecedented devastation to chart a new path for global peace. China, along with the Soviet Union, was among the first to sign the UN Charter, an act symbolizing a shared hope that the horrors of fascism would never be repeated.

The price of that hope was staggering: over 100 million casualties, with half of humanity drawn into the conflict. For China, the war was not just a battleground against foreign invasion; it was a pivotal moment in its modern nationhood. The 14-year resistance against Japanese aggression, which cost 35 million Chinese military and civilian lives, held the Eastern Front and helped shape the moral foundation of the postwar international order.

Looking back from today’s fractured and uncertain world, the lessons of that war remain painfully relevant. Militarism, no matter how technologically advanced or ideologically justified, inevitably breeds destruction. Dominant narratives that claim moral superiority cannot contain the rising currents of multipolarity. Real peace cannot be achieved through alliances defined by exclusion. It requires a shared commitment to inclusion, fairness, and mutual respect.

Trump’s tariffs against Latin America: part of a global battle

In the following Morning Star article, Francisco Domínguez (Secretary of the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign and member of Friends of Socialist China’s Britain committee) situates Donald Trump’s escalating tariff war against Latin America within a broader US imperial strategy to block the emergence of a multipolar world — particularly one shaped by China’s growing influence.

While Trump’s tariffs and other coercive economic measures often appear chaotic, their underlying goal is to “slow down, reduce and if possible, eliminate altogether” China’s alternative vision of global order, based on solidarity and mutually beneficial cooperation rather than “weaponisation of the dollar, economic sanctions or military aggression.”

Washington views the increasingly close relationship between the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and China as intolerable. China has become South America’s main trading partner and Central America’s second largest, expanding beyond raw materials into infrastructure, electric vehicles, telecommunications and renewable energy. Thus China is helping the countries of the region to break out of centuries of underdevelopment imposed by North America and Europe.

Francisco argues that the US–China relationship is often misrepresented as an inevitable conflict between superpowers (a ‘Thucydides Trap’), when in reality it reflects “two different conceptions of how to organise the global economy.” The US insists on a zero-sum model that creates winners in the developed North and losers in the Global South; China promotes a model based on multipolarity, sovereignty and common prosperity.

The article concludes: “The US considers itself the ‘indispensable nation’ which has always engaged in zero-sum games whose outcome produces winners (the US and its economically developed accomplices) and losers (the vast majority of humanity who reside in the global South). Trump’s tariffs intend to keep it that way, while Latin America’s orientation towards Asia, China and the Brics is correctly pushing in the opposite direction: to a fairer, multipolar world.”

Francisco elaborates on these points in a recent interview on the Global Majority for Peace podcast, which we embed below the article.

Trump’s threat of imposing a crippling 50 per cent tariff on all Brazilian imports to the United States took everyone by surprise, especially, considering the US enjoys a trade surplus with the South American giant (surplus it has enjoyed since 2007). Lula made it clear that Brazil would reciprocate in kind.

Trump tariffs against Brazil are in line with his overall policy of applying tariffs on all countries in the world. Under Trump US imperialism seeks to establish a global system that it suits itself such that it can impose or change any rule any time it wants and attack any country it dislikes.

As with many other global institutions, Trump, following in the footsteps of previous US administrations, is prepared to run roughshod over World Trade Organisation rules that US imperialism itself was central in establishing in 1995.

Thus, his attack on Mexico is not surprising either, country with which it has a substantial trade deficit caused by its southern neighbour’s incorporation into US supply chain arrangements ever since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta).

The US has had a trade deficit with Mexico ever since 1995, exactly one year after Nafta.

To Trump’s chagrin, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has vigorously defended her country’s sovereignty and has skilfully navigated US provocations.

To the charge of Mexico being a drug-trafficking hub, she has pointed out to US negotiators that the “the US itself harbours cartels, is the largest narcotic consumer market, exports the majority of armaments used by drug barons and hosts money-laundering banks.” She has also resolutely refused the deployment of US troops on Mexican soil.

The Global Civilizations Dialogue Ministerial Meeting: A liberating vista of a multipolar world

In the following article, Russel Harland (Deputy Branch Secretary and International Relations Officer, Surrey County UNISON, and a member of the Friends of Socialist China Britain Committee) reflects on his participation in the Global Civilizations Dialogue Ministerial Meeting held in Beijing in July 2025, as part of a diverse international delegation.

The conference, attended by over 600 delegates from more than 140 countries, aimed to foster intercivilisational dialogue, mutual understanding, and peace—core principles of President Xi Jinping’s Global Civilisation Initiative (GCI), which, Russel writes, provides a transformative alternative to neoliberal and hegemonic worldviews.

The event’s central theme—Safeguarding Diversity of Human Civilisations for World Peace and Development—was especially resonant amidst current global crises, including the genocide being waged in Gaza. Speeches by senior Chinese officials and international guests praised China’s commitment to peace, multiculturalism, and people-centred development. President Xi’s message underscored values of equality, inclusivity, and cooperation among civilisations.

Participants, including former leaders of Belgium, Japan, and Indonesia, expressed admiration for China’s leadership and global vision. The second day featured smaller roundtables on civilisational exchange, where speakers—from astronauts to poets—stressed the need for empathy, solidarity, and shared progress. Delegates from the Global South highlighted their struggles against colonialism and neoliberalism, echoing a shared history of resistance.

Russel found inspiration in the conference and his pre-conference travels with fellow delegates, seeing China as a hub of cultural diplomacy and hope. He drew parallels with Ireland’s colonial past and stressed the need to break historical constraints through dialogue and understanding. Ultimately, he sees the GCI as a platform for building a just, multipolar world in which, as the Irish poet Seamus Heaney put it, “hope and history rhyme.”

It was an honour to attend the Global Civilisations Dialogue Ministerial Meeting on 10-11 July 2025 in Beijing as an Irish delegate from Friends of Socialist China.This momentous event brought togethermore than six hundred delegates from over 140 countries and regions. Its purpose was to enhance cultural exchanges among civilisations so as to strengthen trust and mutual understanding and transcend differences, recognising the importance of working together for the common aspirationsof humanity.

The conference came a month after the first United Nations International Day for Dialogue among Civilisations, which followed a China-sponsored resolution calling for June 10th to be recognised as a global day for furthering civil dialogue and promoting peace among nations. It is rooted in President Xi Jinping’s 2023 Global Civilisation Initiative (GCI). Together with the Global Development Initiative, and the Global Security Initiative, also proposed by President Xi, they constitute a framework for global transformation away from such neo-liberal maxims as “there is no alternative” and that relations between nations are a “zero-sum game.”

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation prepares for Tianjin Summit

The Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) met in the Chinese city of Tianjin on July 15 to make preparations for the SCO Summit, which will be held in the same city on August 31-September 1, immediately prior to China’s celebration of the 80^th anniversary of victory in the war of resistance against Japanese aggression and the global anti-fascist war, scheduled for September 3.

As China currently holds the rotating presidency of the SCO, the meeting was chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and was attended by:

Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi
Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Murat Nurtleu
Kyrgyz Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeenbek Kulubaev
Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin
Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov
SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev; and
Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure Ularbek Sharsheev

Wang Yi said that over the past 24 years since its founding, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of member states, the SCO has maintained steady and positive growth, continuously expanded cooperation areas, consistently enhanced its international prestige, and increasingly highlighted its strategic value, becoming a reliable anchor for member states to maintain regional stability and achieve common development.

He noted that at present, profound changes unseen in a century unfold at a faster pace, with intertwined and overlapped turbulence and transformation. While a multipolar world and economic globalisation continue to deepen and the Global South stands out with a strong momentum, at the same time, hegemonism and power politics run counter to the tide of progress, the counter-current of protectionism surges, and regional conflicts keep flaring up. Under the new circumstances, member states need to adopt a responsible attitude toward history and the future and reach further consensus on strengthening the SCO.

Wang Yi put forward five proposals for the SCO’s future development:

Stay true to its founding mission and carry forward the Shanghai Spirit. Mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilisations and pursuit of common development illustrate what a new type of international relations should be.

Share weal and woe and consolidate the foundation of security. China is deeply concerned about the situation in the Middle East. The use of force against Iran’s sovereignty and security is a clear violation of international law and undermines the international nuclear non-proliferation regime. Afghanistan is an important member of the SCO family. Efforts should be made to support Afghanistan’s reconstruction and development, and address both symptoms and root causes to realise lasting peace and stability.

Pursue mutual benefit and win-win results to drive the engine of development. Development is of paramount importance and holds the master key to all problems.

Champion good-neighbourliness and jointly build a beautiful home. Helping one’s neighbours is helping oneself.

Uphold the right path and defend fairness and justice. A certain country puts its own interests over the international public good, undermining the common interests of the international community. The SCO should take the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations (UN) as an opportunity to champion the common values of humanity, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of member states, and work for a more just and equitable global governance system.

At a later press conference, Wang Yi announced that leaders from more than 20 countries and heads of 10 international organisations will attend the August 31-September 1 summit and related events. He added that the meeting made comprehensive preparations for the Tianjin Summit and signed multiple resolutions, including the draft Tianjin Declaration of the Council of Heads of State and the draft SCO Development Strategy for the Next Decade.

In the morning of July 15, prior to the Tianjin meeting, Chinese President Xi Jinping had a group meeting with the foreign ministers and heads of permanent bodies of the SCO at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

As Trump threatens BRICS, it grows stronger, resisting US dollar and Western imperialism

In the following article, which was originally published on his Geopolitical Economy website, Beijing-based US journalist and political analyst, Ben Norton assesses the impact and significance of the 17^th BRICS Summit, which was held July 6-7 in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

Ben notes that, among his daily plethora of crude threats to sovereign nations, US President Donald Trump had recently threatened to impose 100% tariffs on the members of BRICS and then claimed that the Global South economic cooperation mechanism was “dead” as a result. However, it is growing, currently with 10 members and 10 partners, as well as a number of observers participating in the summit, where measured steps towards a process of ‘dedollarisation’ ranked high on the agenda.

The Rio Summit was historic not least in the participation of socialist Vietnam and Cuba among the new category of formal partner countries. Ben observes: “This was symbolic, given that Cuba has suffered under illegal US sanctions and a devastating blockade for more than 60 years.”

He adds that, despite the country’s proximity to, and economic integration with, the United States: “Mexico’s progressive President Claudia Sheinbaum sent Foreign Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente to Brazil to participate, even though Mexico is not… a member or partner of BRICS.”

The steady progress of BRICS (to paraphrase the US writer Mark Twain reports of its death were clearly exaggerated) again riled the short-fused US President, who threatened its members with an additional 10% in tariffs – for Trump watchers evidently something of a climbdown from the previously threatened 100%.

This new threat brought a stinging rebuke from Brazil’s President Lula: “The world has changed. We don’t want an emperor.”

Trump also bizarrely cited Spain as a “BRICS nation”, which, in this case, he threatened with 100% tariffs. Spain is neither a member nor a partner of BRICS, which is exclusively made up of members of the Global South. Indeed, it is a NATO ally of the United States. Its social democratic government has, however, enraged Trump by condemning the Israeli genocide in Gaza, being the sole NATO member to outright refuse Trump’s demand to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP and insisting on maintaining positive relations with China.

In the following days, Trump further escalated his feud with Brazil by leaping to the defence of his fascist friend, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is facing trial on charges of attempting a coup following his 2022 election defeat, a case with certain echoes of the violent attempt to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election in the United States.

Lula reacted furiously to Trump’s attempt to help his fellow putschist by threatening Brazil with additional tariffs at 50%. The financial news service Bloomberg reported:

“President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva insisted Brazil can survive without trade with the US and will look to other partners to replace it, a sharp response to Donald Trump after the American leader threatened 50% tariffs against the nation.

“‘We’re going to have to look for other partners to buy our products. Brazil’s trade with the US represents 1.7% of its GDP,’ Lula said in a broadcast interview with Record TV… ‘It’s not like we can’t survive without the US.’

“The Brazilian also said countries like his are not obliged to continue using the dollar to trade, reiterating remarks he made at last weekend’s BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro that he acknowledged ‘likely worried Trump.’

“‘We are interested in creating a trade currency among other countries,’ Lula said in the Record interview. ‘I’m not obligated to buy dollars to conduct trade with Venezuela, Bolivia, Chile, Sweden, the European Union, or China. We can trade in our own currencies.’”

China is a force for peace and progress, that’s why the world needs China

Friends of Socialist China was among the organisers of a hybrid event in Portland, Oregon (US), held on 22 June 2025, discussing Kyle Ferrana’s important book Why the World Needs China.

In his speech (delivered via Zoom), Carlos Martinez endorsed the central thesis of the book, arguing that China represents a global vision centred around peace, progress and sustainable development; whereas the US and its allies represent a global vision centred around imperialism, hegemony, war, ecocide and chaos.

Discussing recent developments in West Asia, in particular the US-Israeli criminal attacks on Iran and the ongoing genocide in Gaza, Carlos highlighted China’s constructive role in the region, including its mediation between Iran and Saudi Arabia and its support for Palestinian unity. He linked the attacks on Iran with the West’s continuing efforts to destabilise China and broader imperialist resistance against a rising multipolar world.

Emphasising the need for global solidarity, Carlos called for building “a global united front composed of the socialist countries, the national liberation movements, the anti-imperialist forces of the Global South, and the progressive forces in the advanced capitalist countries”, for supporting the forces of liberation worldwide, and for supporting the socialist countries – “and particularly China, as the largest and most advanced socialist country, as the country which is at the core of the emerging multipolar system”.

The video of the speech is embedded below, followed by the text.

“Why the World Needs China” is the somewhat provocative title of Kyle’s book.

But in my view the essential correctness of this title is becoming clearer and clearer with every passing day, and specifically with every despicable act of aggression carried out by the United States and its Israeli proxy against the people of Palestine, of Iran, of Yemen and of Lebanon.

As you all know, last night the US military openly joined Israel’s criminal war against Iran, bombing three nuclear facilities. I say “openly joined the war”, because the fact is that the US and its allies been providing weapons, intelligence, logistical support, war propaganda and diplomatic cover from the very beginning – both for this war on Iran and for the genocidal assault on Gaza.

The whole world can increasingly see what the United States and its allies represent, and increasingly the whole world can see what China represents. And these are two vastly different visions of the future of the world, one put forward by the capitalist class in the United States, one put forward by the working class in China.

The US is proposing a Project for a New American Century. This neoconservative notion – originally associated with notorious hawks such as Paul Wolfowitz, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney – has become a consensus position in mainstream US politics, adhered to by all administrations, Republican and Democrat alike. It’s a fundamentally hegemonist, imperialist proposal; a proposal for spreading death and destruction for the sake of projecting the US’s domination of the 20th century into the 21st century.

China will continue to be a stabilising force for peace and progress

From May 13-14, the Chinese People’s Association for Peace and Disarmament (CPAPD), which works under the direction of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee (IDCPC) hosted the Fourth Wanshou Dialogue on Global Security, themed as “Universal Security in a Turbulent World: The Responsibility of Major Countries”. Liu Jianchao, Minister of the IDCPC, attended the event and delivered a keynote speech.

More than 50 international security experts from over 30 countries, including Pino Arlacchi, former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, Andrey Kortunov, former director general of the Russian International Affairs Council, Benny Octaviar, former head of the Indonesian Military Research Centre, Douglas Bandow, a special assistant to former US president Ronald Reagan and a senior research fellow at the Cato Institute, and Zizi Kodwa, a member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress (ANC) and former Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture of South Africa, attended the event.

The participants held in-depth discussions around four topics, namely Pressing Issues of Global Security, The Responsibility of Major Countries Amidst Once in a Century Transformations, Major Country Relations and Security in the Asia Pacific and Pathways to Universal Security.

Friends of Socialist China was invited to participate in the dialogue and we were ably represented by Dr. Jenny Clegg, a Member of our Advisory Group, who is the author of ‘China’s Global Strategy: Towards a Multipolar World’, a Vice President of the Society for Anglo-Chinese Understanding (SACU) and a leading member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and the Stop the War Coalition.

We reproduce below Jenny’s report of the event as well as the text of her speech, which was delivered to the panel session on Major Country Relations and Security in the Asia Pacific.

We also reprint the report of the opening session which was originally carried on the IDCPC website.

The CPAPD website carried a brief report on the event as well as a meeting with Peng Qinghua, Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

Labour Outlook also carried an article, based in part on Jenny’s speech.

Wang Yi: The BRICS family stands at the forefront of the Global South

Following his visit to Kazakhstan, where he attended the Foreign Ministers meeting of China and Central Asian countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi travelled on to Brazil to attend meetings of the BRICS cooperation mechanism preparatory to its summit meeting later this year. Brazil is this year’s revolving Chair of BRICS.

On April 28, Wang Yi attended Session I of the Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Rio de Janeiro. Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira chaired the event.

Wang Yi said that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. The founding of the United Nations opened a brand-new chapter for all countries to jointly build peace and seek development and has promoted remarkable progress in human civilisation. Today, 80 years later, the international landscape has undergone profound changes, the world has entered a period of turbulence and transformation, and the cause of peace and development is facing new and severe challenges. The basic concepts of international cooperation have been eroded, the foundation for the development of international relations has been continuously challenged, and the international environment for peace and development is under assault. At a critical juncture in history, whether countries can make the right choices is crucial to the future of humanity. As positive constructive forces for good on the international stage, BRICS countries should take the lead in being the mainstay of the cause of peace and development.

To this end, Wang Yi made four calls:

To pursue universal security.
To actively promote peace talks.
To consolidate the foundation for development.
To strengthen practical cooperation.

All parties welcomed Indonesia’s first attendance as a full member at the Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs and stressed that efforts should be made to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of BRICS countries and the common interests of the Global South, to promote the establishment of a more just and equitable international order, and to facilitate open, inclusive and sustainable development.

On April 29, the session for Ministers of Foreign Affairs / International Relations from BRICS members and partner countries was held in Rio de Janeiro. The session was chaired by Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira. Foreign ministers and senior representatives from 19 countries discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in the Global South and uphold multilateralism.

Addressing the meeting, Wang Yi said that, today, the BRICS family, with a total population of over half of the world’s population and an economic output accounting for nearly 30 percent of the global total, stands at the forefront of the Global South.

He stressed that faced with hegemonism, BRICS countries must uphold principles and serve as the main force in defending fairness and justice. In the face of unilateralism, BRICS countries must stand at the forefront and be the backbone in promoting solidarity and cooperation.

He made three calls in this regard:

To defend the core position of the United Nations.
To promote the peaceful settlement of disputes.
To foster an open and cooperative international environment.

Wang Yi stated that BRICS members should keep their doors wide open and embrace partner countries to help them deeply integrate into BRICS and fully participate in cooperation, so as to ensure the vibrant development of the mechanism. Continuous efforts should be made to expand the “BRICS Plus” model and bring together more like-minded countries to pool forces for peace and development.

He added that the solution to the world’s problems lies in upholding and practicing multilateralism. The expanded Greater BRICS should continue to advocate for extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, uphold the basic principles of international relations, defend the multilateral trading system, and build a more just and equitable global governance system.

Wang Yi said that in the face of the United States wielding the tariff stick globally, all countries must make the choices: Should the world return to the law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak? Can the selfish interests of one country override the common interests of all nations? Should international rules be ignored or even abandoned? Do compromise and retreat ensure that one stays out of trouble? The ultimate question is whether to accept a unipolar hegemony dominated by one country or embrace an equal and orderly multipolar world.

Xi Jinping: Learning from history to build together a brighter future

On May 7, Chinese President Xi Jinping began a state visit to Russia where he will also attend the celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Ahead of his arrival, the Chinese leader published an article in the government newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta (Russian Gazette).

In his article President Xi recalled that: “Ten years ago around this time, I came to Russia to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the victory. During that visit, I made a special arrangement to meet with 18 representatives of Russian veterans who endured the blood and fire of battlefields during the Soviet Union’s Great Patriotic War and the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Their unyielding resolve and indomitable bearing left an indelible impression on me. In the past few years, General M. Gareyev, Major General T. Shchudlo and other veterans passed away. I pay my deepest tribute to them and to all veterans – from generals to the rank and file-for their extraordinary service and heroic feats in securing the victory over fascists around the world. We will never forget them.”

Xi noted that: “During the World Anti-Fascist War, the Chinese and Russian peoples fought shoulder to shoulder and supported each other. In the darkest hours of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Soviet Volunteer Group, which was part of the Soviet Air Force, came to Nanjing, Wuhan and Chongqing to fight alongside the Chinese people, bravely engaging Japanese invaders in aerial combat – many sacrificing their precious lives.”

He added that: “At the critical juncture of the Soviet Union’s Great Patriotic War, Yan Baohang, a legendary intelligence agent of the Communist Party of China (CPC) who was hailed as the ‘Richard Sorge of the East,’ provided the Soviet Union with primary-source intelligence.”

[Yan Baohang (1895-1968) was an intelligence agent of the CPC and the Communist International, entrusted by later Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Based behind enemy lines in Chongqing, in May 1941 the one-time student at Edinburgh University was able to discover the exact date – June 22 – of the planned German attack on the Soviet Union. He managed to get the information to the communist base area in Yan’an by June 6, where Mao Zedong ordered it to be conveyed to Moscow and where it reached Stalin, enabling important preparations to be made in time. On June 30, eight days after the German attack, Stalin telegraphed Yan’an, to thank Yan “for his accurate information that prompted us to prepare for what’s to come.”

[Richard Sorge (1895-1944) was one of the most brilliant intelligence officers of the Communist International and the Soviet Red Army’s Fourth Department, later known as the GRU or military intelligence. Known particularly for his work in Shanghai and then in Tokyo, he was eventually arrested by the Japanese authorities in October 1941 and hanged in Tokyo on November 7, 1944, the fascists having deliberately chosen to execute this outstanding and courageous internationalist fighter for communism on the anniversary of the October Socialist Revolution. He was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.]

Drawing attention to the contemporary significance of the 80^th anniversary, Xi wrote: “Eighty years ago, the forces of justice around the world, including China and the Soviet Union, united in courageous battles against their common foes and defeated the overbearing fascist powers. Eighty years later today, however, unilateralism, hegemonism, bullying, and coercive practices are severely undermining our world. Again, humankind has come to a crossroads of unity or division, dialogue or confrontation, win-win cooperation or zero-sum games… We must learn from history, especially the hard lessons of the Second World War. We must draw wisdom and strength from the great victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and resolutely resist all forms of hegemonism and power politics. We must work together to build a brighter future for humanity.”

From Bandung to BRICS: the inexorable rise of the Global South

The following is the text of the speech given by our co-editor Keith Bennett to the webinar jointly organised by Friends of Socialist China and the International Manifesto Group on Sunday 27 April, 2025, marking the 70th anniversary of the historic Africa Asia Conference held in the Indonesian city of Bandung.

In his speech, Keith outlined the historic significance of the Bandung Conference, linking it both to its antecedents as well as to the later institutions of the Global South that it inspired, such as the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the BRICS cooperation mechanism.

He pays particular attention to the key role played by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai at the conference and cites Malcolm X, who highlighted the broad unity that Bandung embodied.

We called this meeting to celebrate the 70^th anniversary of the Bandung Conference and to affirm its continued relevance.

What do I mean by that?

It was a key moment in the evolution and development of the international situation post-World War 2.

It came at the cusp of the anti-imperialist national liberation movement:

Just after the liberation of China, itself preceded by the independence of India, Pakistan, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Burma (now Myanmar).

When Korea and Indochina were at the forefront of the global diplomatic agenda – this being the year after the 1954 Geneva Conference.

Just prior to the great wave of decolonisation in Africa, to begin with the independence of Ghana from British colonial rule, under the leadership of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in March 1957, followed by the independence of Guinea from French colonial rule, under the leadership of Ahmed Sekou Toure, in October 1958.

And with the world waking up to the full iniquity of the apartheid regime being progressively consolidated – with newly independent India having been the first country to raise the question at the United Nations.

It was against this backdrop that Bandung established a distinct and common Africa Asia identity as a political concept and geopolitical reality.

Of course, there were antecedents, to a great extent related to the international communist movement and to actually existing socialism:

The Communist International had convened the Baku Congress of the Peoples of the East in September 1920.

In 1927, again at the instigation of the Communist International, delegates including Jawaharlal Nehru of India, Song Qingling (Mme. Sun Yat-Sen) from China, and indeed Fenner Brockway from Britain’s Independent Labour Party, had gathered in Brussels to found the League Against Imperialism.

And in 1945, Manchester hosted the fifth Pan African Congress, attended by three future African heads of state – Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and Hastings Banda of Malawi – along with the African-American scholar and revolutionary Dr. WEB Du Bois, who had attended the first congress in Paris in 1919, and Amy Ashwood Garvey, the widow of Marcus Garvey.

But Bandung occurred at a qualitatively different historical moment in that it was an initiative of independent sovereign states – and in the main of newly independent sovereign states that had just set out on the road of building a new society. They therefore represented what both Indonesian President Sukarno, the host of the conference, and Korean leader Kim Il Sung referred to as the new emerging forces.

Webinar marks 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference

Friends of Socialist China and the International Manifesto Group co-organised a webinar on Sunday 27 April 2025 to address the legacy of Bandung and its relevance to the contemporary world. Speakers at the event were:

Radhika Desai (Convenor, International Manifesto Group)
Ben Norton (Founder and editor, Geopolitical Economy Report)
Tings Chak (Asia Coordinator, Tricontinental Institute)
Jenny Clegg (Author, China’s Global Strategy: Towards a Multipolar World)
Isaac Saney (Cuba and Black studies specialist, Dalhousie University)
Keith Bennett (Co-editor, Friends of Socialist China)
Mushahid Hussain (Pakistani senator, Chairman of the China-Pakistan Institute)

The presentations were followed by a lively and interesting discussion. The video of the webinar is embedded below.

Trump versus the rising Global South

We are pleased to republish the below article by Dr. Kate Hudson, Vice-President of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), which is the gist of her speech given at the ‘Socialism or Barbarism’ Arise Festival Day School, held in London on March 29.

Setting out the need for solidarity with the Global South in the face of US President Donald Trump’s international agenda, Kate points out that US foreign policy goal for the last thirty odd years [that is since the collapse of the Soviet Union] has been to maintain its position of sole superpower status. This means ensuring that no other state should accumulate enough economic and strategic weight to rival it – or to create a new multipolarity that acts against US interests. In the current context, this means the rise of China and the Global South, of which it is part. This trend has been recognised since at least the 1990s, as the success of China’s economic reforms became apparent.

Kate explains that Obama’s ‘pivot to Asia’ was the first really serious attempt to address this, but US policy in this regard does not have merely a military component but also a major economic one. However, the figures are not in the US’s favour:

“In 1993, the G7 countries accounted for 45.4% of the global economy. The most significant economies of the Global South, or BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), made up only 16.7%. Thirty years later, BRICS accounted for 31.5% of the global economy, surpassing the G7 on 30.3%. In August 2023, BRICS added five more countries, adding an extra 4% to BRICS’s share of world GDP.”

Referring to China’s lead in electric vehicles (EVs), Kate notes: “The Financial Times commented on this recently, with the headline ‘Trump’s auto tariffs help Chinese EVs to race ahead’, describing the Chinese sector as the centre of innovation, years ahead of western rivals. Interestingly they say that ‘Beijing’s state-led industrial policy has built a formidable manufacturing base.’ High praise from the FT!”

Meanwhile, south-south trade is increasing. China is Africa’s largest trading partner and creditor; 20% of the continent’s exports go to China, and 16% of its imports come from China.

She concludes: “Through increased political and economic coordination, the Global South will continue to rise: Trump’s policies will not be able to reverse that situation. The danger is the damage he will do on the way, whether politically, economically, or militarily… Our solidarity, our work for peace, is crucial, and we must do everything we can to build links with organisations in and from the Global South. And we must pursue our own campaigning which rejects the right-wing narrative about global threats, whether they come from Trump or Starmer.”

The article was originally published by Labour Outlook.

The US foreign policy goal for the last thirty odd years has been to maintain its position of sole superpower status. This means ensuring that no other state should accumulate enough economic and strategic weight to rival it – or to create a new multipolarity that acts against US interests. In the current context, this means the rise of China and the Global South, of which it is part.

This trend has been recognised since at least the 1990s, as the success of China’s economic reforms became apparent.

Obama’s pivot to Asia was the first really serious attempt to address this, and it clearly had military elements – switching the US submarine force from the Atlantic to the Pacific, for example. Since then, the military orientation has increased, including numerous bilateral cooperation agreements in the East Asian region, the AUKUS pact with Australia, pushing Australia from its pretty positive relationship with China, into the US military and political framework.

But although the US has overwhelming military dominance – as we know from the Vietnam war, it doesn’t mean they would win any conflict, and its recent track record is pretty much all failure. Currently the most interesting and important developments are in the economic sphere, and as far as Trump is concerned, that is the terrain on which he is primarily trying to intervene, with China and the wider Global South.

So first of all, we can see that the figures are against him.

In 1993, the G7 countries accounted for 45.4% of the global economy. The most significant economies of the Global South, or BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), made up only 16.7%. Thirty years later, BRICS accounted for 31.5% of the global economy, surpassing the G7 on 30.3%. In August 2023, BRICS added five more countries, adding an extra 4% to BRICS’s share of world GDP.

So that was the big trend wake up call. One of the crucial factors in this change is the nature of the productive base. Traditionally the Global South, including China, was seen as a source of poor quality consumer goods, textiles, clothes and shoes being examples, but that has changed. The Global South is now home to the majority share of industrial production. Indeed the Global South is capturing significant market share in the high technology sector and this looks set to continue.

Trump is trying to push back against this, notably through his tariffs. One example is the auto industry. His planned 25 per cent tariffs on imported cars and key auto parts are meant to force manufacturers to relocate production to the US and create jobs. But US costs will rise, reducing sales, and so US carmakers’ shares have dropped. It looks like his plan is backfiring. The Financial Times commented on this recently, with the headline Trump’s auto tariffs help Chinese EVs to race ahead, describing the Chinese sector as the centre of innovation, years ahead of western rivals. Interestingly they say that “Beijing’s state-led industrial policy has built a formidable manufacturing base.” High praise from the FT!

Recently the Guardian reported on the Bao economic Forum in China, noting that China wants to protect against the volatility of Trump’s tariffs, and now has more than a dozen free trade agreements with Global South countries. One of the Indian participants pointed out, “The US is never on the side of the Global South,” saying that countries like India should look “within the Global South” for economic support. Indeed the Indian government is said to be in discussions about relaxing restrictions on Chinese trade and investment, which were put in place five years ago after clashes at their common border.

There is no doubt that south-south trade is increasing. China is Africa’s largest trading partner and creditor; 20% of the continent’s exports go to China, and 16% of its imports come from China. China’s foreign direct investment engages strategically with the development of the region, with a portion going towards transportation, mining, energy and infrastructure. But this isn’t just a development triggered by the Trump era. It has been under way particularly since the global financial crisis, with the creation of a more integrated and mutually dependent world south of the equator and east of the Atlantic. In fact Trump’s initiatives to brutally reassert the US economically are actually damaging the US economy.

But while Trump cannot roll back the economic reality, his policies will cause significant hardship and suffering. For example, the impacts of tariffs on other northern countries will damage Global South economies where they have component inputs into northern production.

And the sheer racism of the Trump administration is destroying the lives and livelihoods of millions of migrants, from Latin America and elsewhere. He backs the genocide in Gaza, pushing ethnic cleansing, treating Palestinian lands as a real-estate opportunity. He’s heading for war with Iran. His disgraceful treatment of South Africa, on the basis of supposed racial discrimination against white South Africans, is just absurd. Yet South Africa is a global political leader: its support for Gaza and its legal challenge has been inspirational.

Through increased political and economic coordination, the Global South will continue to rise: Trump’s policies will not be able to reverse that situation. The danger is the damage he will do on the way, whether politically, economically, or militarily.

That’s where we have to do what we can, on the right side of history. Our solidarity, our work for peace, is crucial, and we must do everything we can to build links with organisations in and from the Global South. And we must pursue our own campaigning which rejects the right-wing narrative about global threats, whether they come from Trump or Starmer.

Webinar: The Bandung spirit lives on! Unity against imperialism, and the struggle for a multipolar world

📆 Sunday 27 April 2025, 4pm Britain, 11am US Eastern, 8am US Pacific

Seventy years ago, the Bandung Conference brought together 29 Asian and African countries to discuss the common challenges facing the Third World. The conference was a milestone in the global struggle against colonialism and imperialism, and laid the foundations for the Non-Aligned Movement. This webinar will address the legacy of Bandung, and its relevance to the contemporary world. It will seek to find answers to questions such as:

Are the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, adopted at Bandung, still relevant today?
How can the Bandung spirit help us to build a global united front against imperialism?
What international organisations and movements are carrying forward the Bandung spirit?
Are the US and its allies still trying to divide the Global South, as they did during the Cold War?
How does China’s rise affect humanity’s trajectory towards multipolarity, sovereignty and socialism?

Confirmed speakers

Ben Norton (Founder and editor, Geopolitical Economy Report)
Mushahid Hussain (Pakistani senator, Chairman of the China-Pakistan Institute)
Tings Chak (Asia Coordinator, Tricontinental Institute)
Professor Isaac Saney (Cuba and Black studies specialist, Dalhousie University)
Dr Jenny Clegg (Author, China’s Global Strategy: Towards a Multipolar World)
Moderator: Professor Radhika Desai (Convenor, International Manifesto Group)

Organisers

This webinar is organised jointly by the International Manifesto Group and Friends of Socialist China.

Cold Peace with Russia / Cold War with China: Trump’s foreign policy agenda

The following article by C.J. Atkins, published first in People’s World, analyses the apparently drastic differences between the Trump and Biden administrations’ foreign policy agendas, explaining the underlying strategic and ideological agenda behind Trump’s pivot on Ukraine, and debunking the assorted “simplistic hot takes centered on Trump’s admiration for strongmen or conspiratorial allegations that hinge on Russian blackmail and compromising material”.

Atkins gets to the heart of the issue by pointing out that the differences between Republicans and Democrats over Ukraine are “evidence of a split within the US ruling class which has exploded into the open. At the heart of that split are differences over how to resolve the long-term crisis of US capitalism and confront China’s rise to prominence in the world economy.” He explains that the Washington foreign policy establishment has spent years attempting to weaken Russia, seeing “the further extension of US power in Europe as an important milestone along the road to dealing with China”. Trump on the other hand aims to “take confrontation with Russia off the table”, considering it an “expensive distraction”.

The author further opines that Trump’s tariffs and coercive measures against Canada, Mexico, and Latin America are aimed at bringing those parts of the world “into a tighter embrace with the US economy”, consolidating a trade bloc that excludes and attempts to isolate China. That is, they extend the “decoupling” agenda pursued during Trump 1.0 as well as by the Biden administration.

With US monopoly capital increasingly feeling the competition from China, “the foreign policy being pursued by the Trump administration is an expression of the fears of a large section of the capitalist class, and those fears are why we have witnessed a rush toward the Trump camp by industrial sectors which had previously been skeptical of or neutral toward him.”

If the war in Ukraine can be swiftly ended, this is undoubtedly positive. But people should not think Trump’s overtures to Russia reflect some overarching orientation towards peace. Aggression against Russia is set to be replaced with “a new Cold War against China, the carving up of the world into blocs on behalf of big corporations, more destruction in the Middle East, and the ditching of democracy at home—along with all the things that entails, like labor laws, women’s rights, racial equality, and more.”

Trump labeled President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator” and called him out for not holding elections earlier this week. He said the Ukrainian leader only wants to “keep the gravy train” of U.S. money rolling in, and blamed him for starting the war with Russia.

Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, was said to be committed to “common sense.” The White House declared him to be someone Trump can “work together” with “very closely.”

What a world of difference from just a few months ago when a different U.S. president called Zelensky a “courageous and determined” defender of democracy and denounced Putin as a “war criminal.”

This dramatic turnaround is just the latest example of the about-face that’s happened in U.S. foreign policy over the last several weeks—a change that’s sparked confusion and bewilderment as 80 years of U.S. imperial strategy is seemingly being thrown overboard.

In Europe, Vice President J.D. Vance recently trashed political leaders there for not working together with fascists and initiated what one commentator called “the opening salvo in a trans-Atlantic divorce proceeding.” Snubbing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Trump’s V.P. met with Alice Weidel, leader of the neo-Nazi Alternative for Germany party, instead.

Wang Yi: The Global South should remain at the forefront of improving the global governance system

Following his visit to Ireland, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi proceeded to New York, where, on February 18, on the initiative of China, which holds the rotating Chair of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for February, the UNSC held a high-level meeting on the theme, ‘Practicing Multilateralism, Reforming and Improving Global Governance’. The meeting was chaired by Wang Yi and representatives from over 100 countries participated.

In his address to the meeting Wang Yi noted:

The year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. Eighty years ago, our forefathers, with strenuous struggle and tremendous sacrifice, won the great victory of the Anti-Fascist war; the international community drew painful lessons from the scourge of two world wars; and the United Nations was founded. Multilateralism gradually became the main trend of the times…

The past 80 years is a period of accelerated advancement in world multipolarity and economic globalisation, a period that has witnessed people across the world forging ahead and meeting challenges together, and also a period during which the Global South has been rising and growing in strength. Meanwhile, although human society has emerged from the shadows of the Cold War and moved beyond the bipolar standoff, comprehensive peace and shared prosperity remain elusive. In the third decade of the 21st century, peace and development remains a long-term, arduous task… In the face of the profoundly changing international landscape, the Global South should not only achieve the historic feat of moving toward modernisation together but also remain at the forefront of improving the global governance system.

To this end, he made four proposals:

Upholding sovereign equality. All countries are equal, regardless of size or strength. This is the foremost principle in the UN Charter. In advancing global governance, all countries have the right to participate as equals, make decisions as equals, and benefit as equals. We must respect the development paths chosen independently by people of all countries, uphold the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, and not impose one’s will upon others.

Upholding fairness and justice. Since the end of World War II, a large number of countries in the Global South have emerged on the world stage, which has revealed growing incompatibility and irrationality in the global governance structure. Under the new circumstances, international affairs should no longer be monopolised by a small number of countries. Countries in the Global South have the right to speak up for and defend their legitimate rights and interests. The fruits of development should no longer be taken by just a few countries. People of all countries have the right to a happy life.

Upholding solidarity and coordination. The Security Council must rise above narrow-minded geopolitical considerations, champion the spirit of solidarity and cooperation, fulfil its duties conferred by the UN Charter, and effectually play its role for the maintenance of international peace and security.

Upholding an action-oriented approach. In the face of protracted wars, loss of innocent lives, and challenges brought by new technologies, UN agencies should seek solutions rather than chant slogans. Gaza and the West Bank are the homeland of the Palestinian people, not a bargaining chip in political trade-offs. The Palestinians governing Palestine is an important principle that must be followed in the post-conflict governance of Gaza.

Following the meeting, Wang Yi answered questions from the media. On the issue of Gaza, he said that it is important to recognise that the world is facing more than just the Ukraine crisis. Other hotspots, including the Gaza conflict, also require the international community’s attention and should not be marginalised.

Behind the Gaza conflict lies the unresolved Palestinian question. More than 70 years have passed since the UN adopted the resolution to establish two States, Palestine and Israel, but the two-state solution has only been partially implemented. The State of Israel was established long ago, but the Palestinian people still do not have their own country. Many are displaced, becoming refugees. The Palestinian question remains at the core of the Middle East issue. Palestinian factions should truly implement the Beijing Declaration and achieve unity and self-strength. All parties in the Middle East should transcend their differences and support Palestine’s statehood. The United Nations should take action to admit Palestine as a full member.

The following articles were originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Remarks by H.E. Wang Yi at the United Nations Security Council High-Level Meeting “Practicing Multilateralism, Reforming and Improving Global Governance”

Feb. 19 (MFA) — Your Excellency Secretary General António Guterres,
Colleagues,

I would like to thank Secretary General Guterres for attending this meeting and for his briefing.

The year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. Eighty years ago, our forefathers, with strenuous struggle and tremendous sacrifice, won the great victory of the Anti-Fascist war; the international community drew painful lessons from the scourge of two world wars; and the United Nations was founded. Multilateralism gradually became the main trend of the times. New historical chapters were opened in global governance.

The past 80 years is a period of accelerated advancement in world multipolarity and economic globalization, a period that has witnessed people across the world forging ahead and meeting challenges together, and also a period during which the Global South has been rising and growing in strength. Meanwhile, although human society has emerged from the shadows of the Cold War and moved beyond the bipolar standoff, comprehensive peace and shared prosperity remain elusive. In the third decade of the 21st century, peace and development remains a long-term, arduous task.

The 80 years of history is enlightenment enough: In the face of the turbulent and changing international landscape, the U.N.-centered international system provides important safeguards for the cause of human progress, and the vision of multilateralism with coordination and cooperation as its cornerstone is the best solution to global issues. In the face of the historical trend of shared future, no country can prosper alone; mutually beneficial cooperation is the right choice. In the face of the profoundly changing international landscape, the Global South should not only achieve the historic feat of moving toward modernization together, but also remain at the forefront of improving the global governance system.

Mr. Secretary General,
Colleagues,

To chart our course for the future, we should not forget why we started out in the beginning. Today, transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the world, geopolitical conflicts keep escalating, multiple crises are emerging, and instability and uncertainty are increasingly prominent. In a time of intensifying turbulence and transformation, we need, more than ever, to remind ourselves of the founding mission of the U.N., reinvigorate true multilateralism, and speed up the efforts to build a more just and equitable global governance system. In this connection, China proposes the following:

First, upholding sovereign equality. All countries are equal, regardless of size or strength. This is the foremost principle in the U.N. Charter. In advancing global governance, all countries have the right to participate as equals, make decisions as equals, and benefit as equals. We must respect the development paths chosen independently by people of all countries, uphold the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, and not impose one’s will upon others. We must practice international rule of law, ensure the effective implementation of international law, and reject double standards and selective application. Resolutions of the Security Council are binding, and should be observed by all countries. The Security Council is entrusted with authority, and such authority should be upheld by all countries. Any act of bullying, trickery or extortion is a flagrant violation of the basic norms of international relations. Any unilateral sanction that circumvents Security Council authorization lacks legal basis, defies justification and contradicts common sense.

Second, upholding fairness and justice. A critical part of global governance is to ensure that justice prevails. Since the end of World War II, a large number of countries in the Global South have emerged on the world stage, which has revealed growing incompatibility and irrationality in the global governance structure. Under the new circumstances, international affairs should no longer be monopolized by a small number of countries. Countries in the Global South have the right to speak up for and defend their legitimate rights and interests. The fruits of development should no longer be taken by just a few countries. People of all countries have the right to a happy life. The reform of the Security Council should continue to emphasize democratic consultation, increase the representation and say of developing countries, especially African countries, and effectively redress historical injustice.

Third, upholding solidarity and coordination. Promoting international cooperation is an important purpose of the U.N. Charter, and a sure path toward improving global governance. Countries should commit to the principle of extensive consultation and joint contribution for shared benefit, replace confrontation with coordination, prevent lose-lose through win-win cooperation, and break down small circles with greater solidarity. Members cannot just sit by and watch multilateral institutions become dysfunctional and ineffective due to their own failure to cooperate. The Security Council must rise above narrow-minded geopolitical considerations, champion the spirit of solidarity and cooperation, fulfill its duties conferred by the U.N. Charter, and effectually play its role for the maintenance of international peace and security.

China advocates equality among all countries regardless of size

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has outlined his country’s view of multipolarisation in his address, delivered on February 14, to the 61^st Munich Security Conference.

In four succinct points, without mentioning any country by name, but clearly drawing firm and definite lines of demarcation with the bullying and hegemonic practices of the United States in particular, Wang sets out China’s building blocks for an equal and orderly multipolar world:

It is important to advocate equal treatment. Rivalry between big powers had brought disaster to humanity, as evidenced by the lessons of the two world wars in the not-so-distant past. Whether it is the colonial system or the core-periphery structure, unequal orders are bound to meet their demise. Independence and autonomy are sought across the world, and greater democracy in international relations is unstoppable. It is in this principle that China advocates equality among all countries regardless of size and calls for increasing the representation and say of developing countries in the international system.

It is important to respect international rule of law. The world today is witnessing incessant chaos and confusion, and one important reason is that some countries believe might makes right and have opened a Pandora’s box marked the law of the jungle. In reality, all countries, regardless of size or strength, are stakeholders in international rule of law. Without norms and standards, one may be at the table yesterday but end up on the menu tomorrow. Major countries must take the lead in honouring their words and upholding rule of law, and must not say one thing but do another, or engage in zero-sum game.

It is important to practice multilateralism. In the face of emerging global challenges, no country can stay unaffected, and the “we first” approach in international relations only leads to a lose-lose result.

It is important to pursue openness and mutual benefit. The multipolar world should be one where all countries develop together. Protectionism offers no way out, and arbitrary tariffs produce no winners. Decoupling deprives one of opportunities, and a “small yard with high fences” only ends up constraining oneself.

We reprint the full text of the speech below. It was originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Keynote Speech by H.E. Wang Yi
At the 61st Munich Security Conference
Conversation with China

Munich, February 14, 2025

Your Excellency Chairman Christoph Heusgen,
Dear Friends,
Colleagues,

The world we live in is an increasing mix of turbulence and transformation. Many people are asking the same question: Where is it headed? If I may borrow the theme of this year’s Munich Security Report, it is headed toward multipolarization. When the United Nations was founded 80 years ago, it had only 51 member states; today, 193 countries ride in the same big boat. A multipolar world is not only a historical inevitability; it is also becoming a reality.

Will multipolarity bring chaos, conflict and confrontation? Does it mean domination by major countries and the strong bullying the weak? China’s answer is, we should work for an equal and orderly multipolar world. This is another major proposition put forward by President Xi Jinping, and it represents our sincere expectation for a multipolar world. China will surely be a factor of certainty in this multipolar system, and strive to be a steadfast constructive force in a changing world.

Here, I want to make four points.

First, it is important to advocate equal treatment. Rivalry between big powers had brought disaster to humanity, as evidenced by the lessons of the two world wars in the not-so-distant past. Whether it is the colonial system or the core-periphery structure, unequal orders are bound to meet their demise. Independence and autonomy is sought across the world, and greater democracy in international relations is unstoppable. Equal rights, equal opportunities and equal rules should become the basic principles of a multipolar world.