President Xi’s 2020 UNGA Activities Were an Expression of His Political Theories
President’s Xi’s articulation of these concepts during his UNGA activities and Foreign Minister Wang’s detailed analysis of them can point mankind in the most peaceful, prosperous, and successful direction.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi gave an overview last week of President Xi’s 2020 activities at this year’s UN General Assembly. He intriguingly framed everything through what’s known in China as Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and particularly Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy (hereafter Xi Jinping Thought or XJT for short in this article). Everyone’s understanding of China’s “Global Vision and Firm Commitment as a Major Country”, as his speech was titled, would be enhanced by reading it in full.
In order to improve comprehension of these concepts, the last part of his summary should be talked about first in this analysis. Foreign Minister Wang recalled how President Xi outlined the pathway to building a community of shared future for mankind during his 2015 appearance at the global body, which was followed by his 2017 one about how China’s five lines of effort could help shape a better world. This year the Chinese leader summed up the four important lessons that COVID-19 reminded the international community of.
These lessons are that the UN must stand firm for justice, uphold the rule of law, promote cooperation, and focus on real action. Taken together with President Xi’s participation in the High-Level Meeting to Commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the UN, the General Debate of the 75th Session of the UN General Assembly, the Summit on Biodiversity, and the High-level Meeting on the 25th Anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, a comprehensive Chinese worldview was clearly expressed.
President Xi feels very strongly about injecting a fresh impetus into the global COVID-19 response. China has taken a leading role in preventive measures, testing, tracing, and treatment in contrast to the US’ obstructive one. This is one of the reasons why its handling of the pandemic has been more effective than the US’. Being the scene of the first confirmed outbreak, the country was also the first to realize the severity of this disease. China therefore feels obligated to lead by example in showing the world the best way to respond to it.
America’s irresponsible response to the pandemic is characteristic of the same unilateralism and bullying that President Xi condemned on the world stage. Multilateralism and everything about the UN Charter should remain unchanged, he said, though efforts must be made to enhance international cooperation to tackle ever-increasing global challenges and threats, including non-traditional security ones in the public health sphere. This shows China’s deep understanding of the wide range of threats facing humanity nowadays.
The Chinese leader also put forth some proposals for assisting the global economic recovery, including a focus on win-win cooperation, reform, and innovation. This couldn’t have been timelier since so many are suffering as a result of countless countries’ imperfectly executed COVID-19 preventive and response measures. China’s chief interest is in protecting globalization so that it isn’t replaced by a mass reversion to protectionist policies in the aftermath of this pandemic.
The Chinese leader lauded how his country set a new benchmark in promoting global ecological progress, reminding the world how it’s reduced both emissions and reliance on fossil fuels. He also spoke about the new impetus given to women’s development and the Communist Party of China’s historical role in promoting this. The last element of XJT that Foreign Minister Wang felt was important enough to point out was China’s new sense of responsibility to the core role of the UN through its budgetary, peacekeeping, and other activities.
Keeping in mind the context of today’s rapidly changing world and the influence of COVID-19 on accelerating this process, the international community urgently needs a stable model for ensuring development, security, and cooperation, which is what XJT provides. President’s Xi’s articulation of these concepts during his UNGA activities and Foreign Minister Wang’s detailed analysis of them can point mankind in the most peaceful, prosperous, and successful direction, especially if the US reveres its unproductive stance in this respect.
