Vision: Nation's development seen as 'beacon of hope'

The vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013, has evolved from an initiative into a world consensus and practice that has been increasingly recognized as the most important global public good with profound international significance, officials and experts said.

The vision highlights the original mission of the Communist Party of China, namely striving for the happiness of the Chinese people and for the progress of mankind, and points the way for major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics on the new journey, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

By integrating the fundamental interests of the Chinese people with those of people worldwide, and linking China's future with the common interests of the whole world, it transcends differences in social systems and ideologies, and bridges disparities in history, culture and development stages, Wang said.

It is China's solution to the question of what kind of world to build and how to build it, Wang said in Beijing on Thursday at the unveiling ceremony of a research center on building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Over the past decade or so, President Xi has, on many occasions, given high priority to the vision, saying that the international community is increasingly becoming an interconnected community with a shared future and no country can remain unaffected in the changing and turbulent world.

To date, dozens of countries and regions have joined China in building various forms of shared communities. Multilateral cooperation such as building a global community of health for all, building a community with a shared future in cyberspace, and building a community of life for mankind and nature, is advancing steadily. 

The vision has also been included in the resolutions of the First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly for eight consecutive years. 
Zhang Jun, China's former permanent representative to the UN, said that the vision, advocating unity and cooperation, helps to bridge divisions, rebuild trust and establish a common foundation to jointly address global challenges. 

"It stands in stark contrast to the unilateralism, decoupling and exclusive practices promoted by certain countries and individuals, which positions China's diplomacy on the moral high ground," he said.

Noting that the vision draws wisdom from the rich legacy of traditional Chinese culture, such as valuing peace and universal harmony and putting righteousness first, Xu Bu, former president of the China Institute of International Studies, said it will contribute to the progress of human civilization.

"China's advocacy for humanity's shared values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom, differing from the universal values championed by Western countries, truly represents the aspirations of the broader international community, particularly developing countries," he added.

Zhang Weiwei, director of the China Institute of Fudan University, said: "More and more countries come to realize that the vision is in line with the common interests of all mankind, and represents the greatest common denominator of people from all countries to build a better world."

He noted that China is one of the countries that has truly found its way to success and achieved its development through peace rather than violence and plunder, which he said was a remarkable feat.

China has put forward the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative since 2021, offering its wisdom and solutions to improve world governance and respond to global challenges.
He expressed the belief that more and more nations will recognize the significance of China's ideas and learn from the second-largest economy.

Hu Jiping, vice-president of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said that in a world where major powers are increasingly mired in conflicts and cooperation is hindered, the vision champions a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice and win-win cooperation, which is critical for global peace and development.

The vision also manifests China's responsibility as a major power, he said, adding that Beijing has played a positive and constructive role in facilitating peace talks and resolving international and regional hot spot issues.

"China's development is a beacon of hope for humanity, and the vision is not an empty slogan but a tangible path toward development," said Yang Guangbin, dean of the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China, when talking about the Belt and Road Initiative, which serves as a platform for practicing the vision.

"For instance, under the BRI, Chinese companies have helped countries in South America and Africa build digital communication technologies," he said, adding that this has enabled many developing nations to leap into the information age almost overnight.

So far, 155 countries and over 30 international organizations have signed Belt and Road cooperation agreements with China. Statistics showed that in the first three quarters of 2024, the total trade volume under the BRI was $1.57 trillion, an increase of 4.53 percent compared with the previous year.

Chen Zhimin, a professor at Fudan University's School of International Relations and Public Affairs, said that facing a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, China has put forward the concept of science and technology for good and further enriched the practice of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

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