UN passes China's proposal for civilizational dialogue

UNITED NATIONS — The 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted on Friday a China-proposed resolution to establish the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations.

The resolution states that all civilizational achievements are "the collective heritage of humankind". It advocates respecting the diversity of civilizations, emphasizing "the crucial role of dialogue" among civilizations in maintaining world peace, promoting common development, enhancing human well-being and achieving collective progress.

The resolution calls for "equal dialogue and mutual respect "among different civilizations, fully reflecting the core essence of the Global Civilization Initiative. It decides to designate June 10 as the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations.

Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, introduced the draft resolution at the General Assembly plenary session, stating that in the current context of multiple interlocking crises and challenges, the world has entered a new period of instability and change, placing human society at the crossroads of history once again.

Against this backdrop, China proposed the establishment of the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations to fully leverage the importance of civilizational dialogue in "eliminating discrimination and prejudice, enhancing understanding and trust, promoting people-to-people connectivity and strengthening solidarity and cooperation". The initiative injects positive energy into the global effort to address common challenges.

It demonstrates "China's firm support for multilateralism" and the work of the UN, highlighting China's responsibility as a major country in a century of unprecedented changes, Fu said.

The resolution invites all member states and UN agencies to commemorate the International Day. China encourages all stakeholders to organize events and activities in observance of the International Day guided by the resolution.

In a news interview after the adoption of the resolution, Fu stressed that China put forward the Global Civilization Initiative in March last year, making a sincere appeal to the world for in-depth exchanges and mutual understanding among civilizations and the progress of human society.

The international community has warmly received the initiative, he said, noting that the broad support for the establishment of the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations fully demonstrates that the GCI is in line with the trend and needs of the times.

Xinhua