Developing Major-country Diplomacy with Chinese Characteristics
By CHEN XULONG
AFTER the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2012 China proposed the exploratory concept of major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics. In other words, China, as a major country, will assume greater international responsibilities while its diplomatic policy continues to reflect distinctive Chinese characteristics. This concept was established as the guideline for China’s diplomatic work at the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs on November 28-29, 2014.
Major-country diplomacy means that China presents the image of an emerging power, takes on bigger international responsibilities, and makes greater contributions to the international community by maintaining fairness and equity, upholding justice, and providing more high quality international public products.
The phrase “Chinese characteristics” carries the main connotation of this concept. China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi held that such Chinese characteristics should be manifest in the following four respects:
First, in conducting its diplomacy, China should stick to the social system and development path that are widely supported by the Chinese people, i.e. socialism with Chinese characteristics under the CPC’s leadership.
Second, China should adhere to the independent foreign policy of peace, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and other fine traditions in its diplomacy, such as non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs.
Third, China will work towards achieving equity and fairness and safeguarding justice, so helping to maintain the overall interests of developing countries and push forward the democratization process of international relations.
Fourth, China’s diplomacy must serve domestic development and the reform and opening-up drive. Although the world’s second largest economy in aggregate terms, China is distinctive among other countries in that it is still developing. China’s diplomacy, therefore, must create a stable and friendly external environment that is conducive to its domestic development.
Win-win Cooperation the Key
Major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics holds that win-win cooperation should be the guiding principle in international affairs. It has hence been embodied in all aspects of China’s international exchanges and cooperation.
The Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road Initiatives integrate China’s development strategy with that of its neighboring areas, thus promoting regional connectivity.
Meanwhile, China interlinks its development blueprints with those of other developing countries, with the aim of establishing a new cooperation framework.
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are working towards intensifying their cooperation to achieve bilateral economic development and expand mutual benefit and win-win results. Efforts are made on seven fronts, including discussion on a treaty of good-neighborly and friendly cooperation between China and ASEAN countries, negotiations to upgrade the China-ASEAN free trade area, speeding up interconnectivity infrastructure construction, enhancing regional cooperation on finance and risk prevention, and promoting exchanges and cooperation on security issues, people-to-people contact, sci & tech and environmental protection.
In promoting China-Africa cooperation, China proceeds under the principle whereby the two parties treat one another as equals, enhancing solidarity and mutual trust, and pursuing inclusive development and innovative pragmatic cooperation. Six fields of bilateral cooperation have been highlighted – industry, finance, poverty relief, environmental protection, people-to-people exchanges, and security. China will meanwhile make good use of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum as an important exchange platform.
The Belt and Road Initiatives will bring China and the Arab countries along the Old Silk Road, with whom it had trade partnerships in ancient times, even closer. With the energy sector at the center of bilateral cooperation, the two sides will step up efforts to facilitate trade and investment, enhance infrastructure construction, and seek breakthroughs in the three hi-tech industries of nuclear power, space satellites and new energy.
In advancing its relations with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), China aims for inclusive growth and sustainable development. Having mapped out their 2015-2019 cooperation plan, China and CELAC are integrating their development strategies. The focus of the two sides’ cooperation will be on energy, infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing, technical innovation, and information technology.
China is also advancing its cooperation with South Asian countries and exploring ways to build a new security cooperation framework in Asia. Meanwhile, China promotes exchanges with other BRICS countries, so promoting an integrated market and interconnectivity over land, through the air, and on the sea.
