Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) at the "Shanghai Cooperation Organization Plus" Meeting held in North China's Tianjin on September 1. This is another important public good that China has provided to the international community, following the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative. This important initiative points the way forward and provides a practical path for the reform and development of the global governance system, injecting strong impetus into promoting the building of a more just and equitable global governance system and working together for a community with a shared future for humanity.
In October 2015, President Xi put forward the global governance vision of extensive consultation and joint contribution for shared benefit. A number of important speeches included in the book series Xi Jinping: The Governance of China reflect President Xi's ideas for promoting reform and improvement of global governance. One of the speeches was delivered at the 19th G20 Summit in Brazil in November 2024, where he once again called for working for a just and equitable global governance system. He also advanced concepts and ideas to improve global governance in the economic, financial, trade, digital and ecological fields, contributing Chinese wisdom and strength to improving the global governance system and opening up a better future for the world.
In the 12th installment of the special series "Decoding the Book of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China," the Global Times, along with People's Daily Overseas Edition, continues to invite Chinese and foreign scholars, translators of Xi's works, practitioners with firsthand experience and international readers to discuss the theme of "promoting the building of a more just and equitable global governance system and working together for a community with a shared future for humanity," in a bid to explore in depth the significant contemporary value and global importance of the GGI.
In the 12th article of the "Readers' Reflections" column, Global Times (GT) reporter Ma Jingjing spoke with Xulio Rios (Rios), director of the Observatory of Chinese Politics in Spain, about his understanding of the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) and its profound implications for the world in addressing shared challenges.
GT: Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) at the "Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Plus" Meeting in North China's Tianjin on September 1. What is the significance of this initiative? Why is it proposed at the moment? As the world is undergoing accelerating changes unseen in a century, what's the global implication of the initiative in addressing shared challenges?
Rios: We are living through a moment of historical inflection. There exists an economic and political sphere in which China already plays a central role. A multipolar reality is taking shape in the world. Power balances are shifting and global crises are accumulating. The GGI is the need of the hour. This is the moment for China to assume a leading role in the creation of new forms and mechanisms of global governance.
In this regard, the GGI highlights both the complexity of the present moment and the pressing shortcomings that must be addressed in order to prevent current turbulence from escalating into major conflicts that could once again bring humanity to the brink. Currently, the international landscape is undergoing complex and profound changes. The core role of the United Nations and the mechanisms of multilateralism are facing severe challenges, leading to a global governance deficit.
The Concept Paper on the Global Governance Initiative released by China identifies the serious underrepresentation of the Global South, the erosion of authoritativeness, and the urgent need for greater effectiveness - issues that underlie the approach of this proposal - which point to the orientation of the roadmap to be followed in order to promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.
The GGI thus provides a foundation for advancing greater democracy, justice, and effectiveness within the international system.
GT: You have visited China many times and have written articles and more than a dozen books about China, including China Modernization and Chinese Globalization. In your experiences of dealing with China, what public goods or practices offered by China have impressed you the most? And, what practices by China have deepened your understanding of the GGI?
Rios: China's role in global governance has grown considerably over the past decades.
Today, China stands out as a key actor in sustainable development and the fight against poverty. Since the launch of reform and opening-up in the late 1970s, China has lifted about 800 million people out of poverty, accounting for more than 70 percent of global poverty reduction. Meanwhile, the country is driving forward the UN 2030 Agenda. At the same time, the promotion of alternatives, platforms, and forums - from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the SCO - has fostered the consolidation of new institutions and networks. For example, at the recent SCO Summit in Tianjin, member states strengthened consensus through dialogue and deepened mutual trust via exchanges. This multi-level and multi-dimensional interactions demonstrate the vitality and appeal of China's initiatives, which are earning growing consensus from nations with diverse national conditions.
China has become an indispensable protagonist in global governance, advancing constructive reforms while simultaneously managing the tensions arising from the resistance of traditional powers. Along with the growth of China's economic and commercial power, it's playing a more active role in the sphere of global governance.
It is also worth highlighting the promotion of recent initiatives such as the International Organization for Mediation, offering an innovative solution to improve international dispute settlement system. At a time when unilateralism and the law of the strongest threaten to destabilize countries and regions by exacerbating conflicts, this commitment to resolving disputes through consultation and the pursuit of shared benefits - aimed at meeting the aspirations for peace of the majority of people - offers mechanisms and solutions that are more sustainable and enduring.
GT: One of the five principles of the GGI is practicing multilateralism. The fifth volume of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China included President Xi's important speech at the Session II of the 19th G20 Summit under the title "Work for a Just and Equitable Global Governance System." In the speech, Xi stressed practicing "true multilateralism". In your views, how will China's concrete practices play a greater role in promoting global trade governance under current circumstance?
Rios: The objective of the multilateralism China has advocated is to reaffirm the centrality of the UN as the starting point for achieving a more inclusive and multipolar global governance, and safeguard an equal and orderly multipolar world, offering a Chinese solution to addressing the global governance deficit.
China has become one of the most active countries in submitting proposals within the WTO framework and in promoting reforms that grant greater prominence to developing countries, strengthening the principle of special and differential treatment. Likewise, the construction of "global public goods" is generating opportunities for many countries. Finally, though no less importantly, China's expansion of regional agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and its activism in aligning with high-level international economic and trade standards, application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA),further consolidate its position as a central pillar of a multipolar economic order.
GT: The GGI advocates the people-centered approach. In the article "Chinese Modernization: Our Path to a Great Country and National Rejuvenation" included in the fifth volume of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China, President Xi pointed out that "Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, and particularly since the launch of reform and opening up in 1978, we have completed in a few decades the process of industrialization that took developed Western countries centuries to complete," "Developing countries can now embrace fresh hopes and alternatives." What are the profound implications of Chinese modernization for improving global governance?
Rios: The concept of "Chinese modernization" is not only a guiding principle for China's economic and social development in the new era but also a theoretical innovation with international projection. This vision always upholds the common values of humanity, adheres to a strategy of opening up for mutual benefits, and through the practice of high-quality development, injects robust momentum for peace, development, and win-win cooperation into the progress of human civilization.
Over my several decades of engagement with China, I have been able to witness firsthand the scale and the dizzying speed of these profoundly accelerated changes. For instance, in the field of technology, China's internet penetration rate has far surpassed that of any Western country, leaving a profound impression on every foreign visitor. This stands in stark contrast to my experience in Western cities, where time seems to stand still, whereas in China, everything is in development. It has been, and continues to be, a remarkable process and its development experience offers valuable lessons for the rest of the world. What is not sufficiently emphasized is that this effort has rested squarely on the shoulders of Chinese society itself, in contrast to other processes of capital accumulation that have relied to a large extent on the overexploitation of other countries.
Its contribution to global governance can be observed on several levels. First, it represents an alternative model of development, offering other countries a path distinct from the Western one by combining economic growth, political stability, and indigenous values. In this way, it diversifies the sources of international economic governance, making the system more plural.
Second, its contribution to global public goods is noteworthy: the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative and the GGI have expanded the range of actors and mechanisms in international governance.
Third, modernization entails a broader and more sophisticated domestic market, which reinforces China's role as a driver of the world economy.
Fourth, China is a central actor in the debate on the regulation of emerging technologies, with its approaches setting trends that shape global governance. Fifth, China's energy transition sets the pace in climate governance. In sum, modernization and its achievements serve as a springboard for achieving a more multipolar, inclusive, cooperative, and representative system of governance.
GT: In October 2023, China put forward the Global AI Governance Initiative, which follows the people-centered, AI-for-good principle. In your view, how can China's rapid technological advancement and open-minded international collaboration boost global tech governance and digital governance? What actions should developing countries take to safeguard their participation rights, discourse power, and decision-making authority?
Rios: China's technological advancement, combined with its growing international collaboration, is emerging as one of the most decisive vectors for promoting reforms in global governance. This is particularly evident in the setting of international technological standards. Today, China's significant investments in artificial intelligence, 5G, 6G, big data, semiconductors, biotechnology, renewable energy, and space exploration, as well as its participation in organizations such as the International Telecommunication Union, the International Organization for Standardization, or WTO, influence the establishment of technical and regulatory norms. This compels the adaptation of international governance in areas as prominent as telecommunications, cybersecurity, and digital trade.
Much in this order of governance needs updating, and it is impossible to do so without taking China into account. This entire dynamic amplifies China's resonance among developing countries and reinforces the indispensable need for international governance to better reflect these interests.
Source: Global Times:
Company: Global Times
Contact Person: Anna Li
Email: editor@globaltimes.com.cn
Website: https://globaltimes.cn
City: Beijing
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