Community of Shared Future for Mankind: Theoretic Significance and Practical Drive

WANG FANVice-President and Professor， China Foreign Affairs University



Community of Shared Future for Mankind: Theoretic Significance and Practical Drive

WANG FAN
Vice-President and Professor， China Foreign Affairs University

On November 15， 2015， the 10th G20 Leaders’ Summit was held in Antalya， Turkey. Chinese President Xi Jinping attended and delivered a speech titled "Innovate in Growth Path， Share Development Achievement”. This is a group photo of the participating leaders.

Since the end of the Cold War，particularly in recent years， the international pattern has become more and more complicated， major crises having more and more global reach. Common challenges facing mankind are on the increase. To cope with common threats and to expand common interest of mankind， the Government of China has proposed the construction of a community of shared future for mankind. In the Report to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China， China timely put forward the concept of a community of shared destiny， and has since on a series of diplomatic occasions used and enriched the concept， elevating the traditional concept of community to a brave new idea and giving rise to the initial form of an theoretic system with Chinese characteristics， namely community of shared destiny in terms of people’s livelihood， community of shared interest in economic terms and community of shared responsibility in security terms.

The idea of community of shared destiny is a major and concentrated embodiment of Chinese view on the international order and also its extension and development. The connotation of the community of shared destiny boils down to five aspects namely having faith and promoting good will（in political terms）， cooperation for mutual benefit （in economic terms），watching for and helping one another（in security terms）， having mutual affinity （in cultural terms） and being open and inclusive （in diplomatic terms）. This strategic conceptualization not only reflects China’s own interest but also keeps in mind concerns of other countries in the region.

WHY SHoUlD CHiNA PRoMoTE THE CoMMUNiTY oF SHARED DEsTiNY？

China propose to build a community of shared destiny， aiming to realize interconnectivity， conduct cooperation and seek common development with not only China’s own development but also that of the region. Terrorism， energy crisis and epidemics may all affect China’s development. As a result， China must share weal and woe with other countries， working together against external risks and challenges. Only by establishing consciousness of community of shared interest and community of shared security， can countries achieve common development. all countries of different traditions and ideologies in the world.

First of all， it embodies China’s worldview. The world， with interconnection and interdependency， is an entity. Mankind has developed to date， a major change being the two great factors of globalization and interdependence. In a world of interdependency，the complex of world is beyond the capacity of any country to deal with it single-handedly. In such a world， only by helping one another can all countries achieve common development，the destiny of individuals is bound up with that of their country， which， in turn is bound up with the region and the world at large. The community of shared destiny is deeply seated in the fact of the interrelationship of the world and has become the consensus of more and more countries.

Secondly， the community of shared destiny is fitting to economic globalization of today and to the fact of interdependency of the international community. In economic terms， the community of shared destiny is the community of shared interest. Interdependence pertains not only to mutual need between countries but also， to a larger extent， to the fact that in economic development all links are so closely connected with one another that they cannot be separated. Many a country is a link to the international chain of production， being a part of closely connected production， trade， finance and cyber space. An order placed by one country affects the employment of another； outward investment of one country advances the development of infrastructural construction in another； and conversely a problem of the economy of one country may also trigger off a chain reaction. To realize the community of shared interest is to bind together the interest of member countries of the community for true general increment of interest.

Thirdly， in terms of security， the embodiment of community of shared destiny is the community of shared responsibility. For China， its past development has depended on cooperation and openness of the neighborhood and other countries. Its sustainable development in the future can be even less detached from working hand in hand with neighboring countries. The security of one country cannot be built on the basis of insecurity in its neighborhood. Moreover， the domestic unrest of one country can spill over to other countries. Only in a stable neighborhood， can China better seek development. China’s stable development also provides other countries with development opportunities.

The community of shared destiny is the sum of community of shared interest and community of shared security. In terms of national interest， to have sizable foreign disturbance will affect

THEoRETic VAlUE oF REAliZiNG CoMMUNiTY oF SHARED FUTURE oF MANkiND

The community of shared future for mankind gives full expression of the international order outlook with Chinese characteristics. China’s international order outlook is developed on the basis of the spirit of Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence promoted by China and other countries. As open and inclusive principles of international law， the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence fully represent the values of sovereignty， justice， democracy and rule of law. The thinking behind the community of shared future for mankind is the extension and development of the five basic principles.

The concept of community of shared destiny represent the wisdom of the East， which emphasizes correct handling of relations between oneself and others， standing for treating others on equal footing rather than lording it over and imposing one’s view on others. Derived from this， there is relevant altruism and winning people by virtue in Chinese style. China’s diplomacy stresses on win-win situation in reducing conflicts and on coordination in building on harmony， which also invokes the spirit of the five basic principles.

The core to mutual benefit and win-win results is how to handle relations between oneself and others. International politics， in nature， is to consider “oneself”and “others” （other countries） and relations between the two. The way of wisdom is to give considerations to the interest of others while giving considerations to that of one’s own. Western theories also touchupon mutual benefit but in practice still give more emphasis to their own national interest. The fact that the Chinese stress on striking a relative balance between self-interest and altruism bears profound significance to sustainable development.

The community of shared destiny emphasizes on interaction， reciprocity and agreement between rights and responsibility and on shared responsibility and obligations rather than unilateral demand. The community of shared destiny puts in the limelight“common” in concomitance， coexistence and common development. It advocates building a common homeland and emphasizes sailing in the same boat and going through thick and thin together.

The community of shared destiny actively advocates the concepts of coconstruction， win-win situation， sharing and co-prosperity， tries its best to resolve vicious conflicts and pushes major-country relations and relations between all types of countries towards harmony， amity and cooperation. The important significance of the community of shared destiny is that it sets store by coexistence and informs people of how to achieve coexistence.

First of all， it stands for peaceful coexistence under the principles noncoercion and non-violence. Secondly， it emphasizes concomitance and coexistence in diversity rather than forcing uniformity. Third， it calls for coexistence in line with common development， advocating a new development outlook， namely sustainable development， and striving for common prosperity.

Ultimately， the international order outlook guided by the community of shared destiny can be described in brief as democratization of international relations and placing international relations under the rule of law.

Democratization of international relations stresses on that the destiny of the world should be controlled in common by the people of various countries. The world affairs should be run in consultation with governments and the people of various countries. It is necessary to push various parties to international relations to go by international law and accepted basic norms of international relations， to use generally applicable rules to judge the right and wrong， to pursue peace and to seek development.There should not be double standard for applicable laws. The authority and seriousness of international law and international order should be upheld. All countries should excise their rights according to law and be opposed to encroachment on lawful rights of other countries and impairment of peace and stability in the name of “rule of law”.

HoW To ADvANcE THE CoMMUNiTY oF SHARED DEsTiNY

1. Advancement of the community of shared destiny， implemented in state to state relations， should give the spotlight to commonality， interaction， inclusion and coordination

First of all， commonality. （A） Stressing on common interest as， for all countries， development is the primary task. At present， for the developed countries and the developing countries alike， all face the task of domestic reform and structural transformation，and though at different levels and to different degrees of development， development being common goal and common interest of all countries. （B）Stressing on common threats. Mankind faces quite a number of transnational common threats， particularly common threats to mankind as a whole， such as， for non-traditional security threats， climate change， global warming， resources degradation， epidemics and cyber security， all being far beyond the capacity of any country by itself to cope with or resolve. Common threats call for joint efforts of all countries. （C） Common responsibilities. Based on common interest and common threats， all countries should，guided by consciousness of community of shared future for mankind and all sharing weal and woe， make concerted efforts in shouldering common but differentiated responsibilities and in addressing common issues facing mankind.

Secondly， interaction. The so-called cooperation for win-win results is based on interaction， another basic property of international relations. In the past， some of the major countries gave few considerations to interaction，stressing rather on singleness， unilateralism and turning things to one’s own advantage. The interaction that China stands for stresses on equality，mutual respect and shared interest.

Third， inclusion. To be open and inclusive is an important concept of major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics， also an effective principle for China to handle all kinds of contradictions and disputes. The source of war and conflicts rests with people’s thinking. Views on civilizations and various kinds of affairs significantly affect state-to-state relations. Tolerance and inclusion is what is behind the broad and profoundChinese civilization， which has the breadth of spiritof the sea receiving all rivers. It fully respects the diversity of world civilizations， enhances dialogue between civilizations and promotes cultural harmony with the concept of“all rives running to the sea， tolerance breeding greatness， harmony without uniformity and all coexisting and accommodating each other”.

Fourth， coordination. China aspires to be a constructive coordinator，playing a positive role on all global hotspot issues. Only by so doing can China lead the continued development in building the community of shared destiny. In today’s world， China cannot attend to its own moral uplift without thought of others. Only the world is well can China be better. China has never been absent either from promoting the world economic recovery or seeking political solution to international and regional hotspot issues or addressing global issues and challenges， which are the expectations of the international community and China’s responsibilities.

2. Key issues should be appropriately dealt with in advancing the community of shared destiny

China has neither colonies nor sphere of influence. It pursues nonalliance and its development model is different from the West. As such how can China work for the achievement of the community of shared destiny？It is necessary to handle appropriately issues in the following aspects.

First of all， non-interference with internal affairs of other countries and exerting constructive influence. China does not interfere with internal affairs of other countries but plays the role of a major country， exerting positive and constructive influence of a major country. In regard to internal affairs of other countries， China will not interfere or impose its view on other countries. However， China could not and should not fold its arms and look on，but rather it strengthens communication with concerned countries through means acceptable to them， shares situation information， makes suggestions，provides reasonable support and promotes pragmatic cooperation.

Secondly， non-alliance and cooperative partnership. President Xi Jinping puts forward a forward-looking proposition for building a new type of international relations. This principle governing state-to-state relations can fundamentally resolve root-cause issues of today’s international relations，that is to make friends extensively starting from the premise of sticking to the non-alliance principle and to form a global network of partnership，for dialogue rather than antagonism and partnership rather than alliance. To have established a global network of partnership is an abstract and summary of China’s successful diplomatic practice， the practice that put the diplomatic thinking on a higher strategic plane and with a broader global horizon.

Thirdly， decolonization and new type of regional cooperation. Since the outset of the modern times， China has suffered from being a semi-colony. China’s development does not practice colonialism or neo-colonialism. China neither seeks dominance in regional affairs nor carves sphere of influence.

China will benefit mankind with its own prosperity and development. The renewal of China is not to seekhegemony but to become a positive force for peace， making major contributions to mankind. The way China advances its own development and development of other countries is the new win-win， multiple-win and shared-winconcept， a way toward regional economic integration and a new type of regional cooperation under the complex regional conditions.

3. Route of implementing construction of community of shared destiny

First of all， the community of shared destiny should start from the region. Common interest between Asian countries far exceeds differences and contradictions among them. Besides，through development of Asia over the years， they have accumulated useful experience of properly handling differences and have set up some mechanisms that help resolve differences and different opinions and help reach consensus. Only by drawing upon useful experience and giving play to the mechanisms can there be basic guarantee for building the community of shared destiny.

Secondly， it is necessary to insist on mutual respect and treating one another on equal footing. All countries，big and small， should be equal. For a major country， there is more responsibility rather than monopoly for peace and development for the region and the world at large. It is necessary for Asian countries to consult one another on major issues， to enhance transparency and mutual trust， to make joint efforts in maintaining the peaceful and stable situation and favorable development momentumin Asia not easy to come by and to be opposed to interference with internal affairs of each of the countries and to any country meddling with the regional situation out of its own interest.

Thirdly， it is necessary to strengthen communication and interaction at multiple levels and in multiple areas. According to incomplete statistics，since 2013， China has conducted more than 60 exchanges of foreign ministerial visits with East Asian and Southeast Asian countries and hundreds of bilateral and multilateral meetings every year on the average. By the end of 2012， China had set up 66 Confucius Institutes and 32 Confucius Classroomsin Asian countries and had approaching 500000 exchange students with them. Every year， there are more than 30 million person times making visits between China and Asian countries，and over 15 million person times from Asian countries entering China， accounting for 57% of all entries of foreigners. Seven of the top ten countries in terms of entries of foreigners to China are Asian countries. It is a necessary approach to integration to build on multi-level cooperation network of high-level interaction and people-topeople exchanges.

Fourthly， it is necessary to strengthen pragmatic cooperation and strive to achieve results. By taking the pulse of Asian developmentand accurately locating converging points of interest of countries in the region， China has come up with a series of important initiatives such as building the Silk Road Economic Belt， the 21 Century Maritime Silk Road， the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor， the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor，“2+7 Cooperation Framework” between China and the ASEAN countries and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. China will coordinate closely with Asian countries to ensure that all of the initiatives are carried out in practice and achieve early results， injecting still greater dynamics to economic development of the region and benefitting the people of all countries in Asia. It is a pragmatic choice for integration to begin in a small way and to begin in a practical way. The Asian integration calls for incremental effects， with emphasis on implementation.

In sum， for building the community of shared destiny， it is necessary to see the change， seize the timing， stress on cooperation， focus on association and set store by construction. It is necessary to establish virtue by doing good，lead trend in making rules and shape the situation by going with the tide.