Yearender: New diplomatic concepts raised by China

BEIJING - The past two years have seen a bumper harvest in Chinese diplomacy, guided by some new concepts raised by the leadership with the aim of safeguarding world peace and development.

The following are some major new concepts of China's diplomacy.

COMMUNITY OF COMMON DESTINY

In a keynote speech at the opening of the Boao Forum on April 7, 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged to foster a sense of community of common destiny.

Xi said our planet is home to all countries. Common development, which is the very foundation of sustainable development, serves the long-term and fundamental interests of all peoples in the world.

China has so far shared commitments to common destiny with Africa, Latin America, Arab states and Europe.

ONE BELT, ONE ROAD

On Sept. 7, 2013, Xi delivered a speech at Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan, suggesting that China and Central Asia join hands to build a Silk Road economic belt to boost cooperation.

On Oct. 3, 2013, Xi said in a speech at the Indonesian Parliament that China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will promote maritime cooperation and build a 21st-century maritime Silk Road.

More than 50 countries along the ancient Silk Road have voiced willingness to participate in the "One Belt and One Road" initiatives to foster common development between China, Europe and Asia.

This concept has created a new opportunity to rejuvenate the economic and cultural ties built via the ancient Silk Road, presenting a win-win approach to peaceful coexistence and common development.

The "One Belt and One Road" vision, once realized, would directly benefit 4.4 billion people, or 63 percent of the global population. The participating countries have a combined gross domestic product of 2.1 trillion U.S. dollars, or 29 percent of the world total.

CHINA'S APPROACH TO NUCLEAR SECURITY

On March 24, 2014, Xi elaborated on China's approach to nuclear security at the third Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague, urging global cooperation for nuclear security and development.

Xi said the use of nuclear energy gave new impetus to the progress of humanity. Yet mankind must be able to respond to various nuclear security challenges, and ensure the safety of nuclear materials and facilities.

He urged all nations to fulfill their duties under international legal instruments regarding nuclear security, and implement relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

CHINA'S CONCEPT OF CIVILIZATION

On March 27, 2014, in a speech delivered at the headquarters of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Xi called for global efforts to boost exchanges and mutual learning and achieve harmonious coexistence of different civilizations.

He said civilizations are diversified, equal and inclusive, adding that inter-civilization exchanges and mutual learning should be given full play as a bridge of friendship among peoples, a driving force behind human progress and a strong bond for world peace.

NEW ASIAN SECURITY CONCEPT

On May 21, 2014, Xi delivered a keynote speech at the fourth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia, calling for a common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security strategy for Asia.

Referring to a "new Asian security concept," Xi said that for most Asian countries development means the greatest security and the master key to regional security.

To build an Asian security edifice that could stand the test of storms, Xi said, "we need to focus on development, actively improve people's lives and narrow down the wealth gap so as to cement the foundation of security."

The president also urged to advance the process of common development and regional integration, foster sound interactions and synchronized progress of regional economic cooperation and security cooperation, and promote sustainable security through sustainable development.

ASIA-PACIFIC DREAM

On Nov. 9, 2014, at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit, Xi called for efforts to create and fulfill an Asia-Pacific dream.

He said the dream is about acting in the spirit of the Asia-Pacific community and out of a sense of shared destiny, following the trend of peace, development and mutually beneficial cooperation, and jointly working for prosperity and progress of the region.

The dream is also about staying ahead of global development and making greater contribution to the well-being of mankind, as well as having more economic vitality, free trade and investment facilitation, better roads, and more people-to-people exchanges.

Moreover, the dream is about ensuring greater security and prosperity for the peoples and giving children a better environment to grow, work and live.

To realize the Asia-Pacific dream, the region should redouble efforts to forge a partnership of mutual trust, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation and jointly build an open economy.