By Qin Xiaoying (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-30 07:25

General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Hu Jintao suggested in his report to the 17th National Congress of the CPC earlier this month that all peoples of the world should "share opportunities of development and deal with all kinds of challenges together" and "advance the construction of a harmonious world of lasting peace and common prosperity".

Here he regards "share opportunities of development and deal with all kinds of challenges together" as two important ways in which the CPC handles contemporary international issues, with the ultimate goal being the realization of a "harmonious world". The standard and characteristic of this "harmonious world" is "lasting peace" and "common prosperity". The suggestion and deliberation show clearly the CPC's handling of international relations is maturing and China is becoming a responsible global power.

Since China began implementing its reform and opening up policy, nearly 30 years of twists and turns in international affairs has greatly raised the sophistication of its strategic policy-making while gradually turning the country from an outsider and onlooker of world affairs into a participant and responsible member.

Deng Xiaoping once said there could not be reform without opening up. China's reform has been closely linked to opening to the outside world since 1978. In other words, it is extremely important to China's reform to carry out exchanges in politics, economy, military affairs, science and technology, and culture with other countries.

Amid the overwhelming tide of economic globalization, the Chinese government has been playing an increasing role of real substance in a multi-polar world for its own development and that of most of the developing nations. By real substance I mean China, faced with all kinds of complicated international issues, has not only maintained a normal stand, but also fulfilled its obligations and responsibilities. It has abided by the principles and rules of international relations and learned to supplement and amend various conventions as circumstances required.

This was a phase in which China was obliged to deepen its perception and experience, and the unavoidable responsibility of a major power. In this phase of development, China impressed the world a great deal with its success in gaining World Trade Organization (WTO) membership, forming the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and hosting the China-Africa Forum.

When discussing in his report to the congress how China should handle international relations, Hu said that the country should follow the dictum and principles of the United Nations Charter as well as faithfully abide by international law and universally recognized norms of international relations. He has categorized this solemn promise of "following" and "faithfully abiding by" into five aspects.

First, politically, China and other nations should treat one another with mutual respect, conduct consultations on an equal footing and jointly advance the democratization of international relations; second, China and other countries should cooperate, complement each other and jointly push economic globalization toward a balanced, all-win development; third, China and other nations should learn from one another, identify common aspirations without losing their own characteristics, respect the diversity of the world and join hands in promoting the prosperity and progress of human civilization; fourth, China and other countries should build mutual confidence, step up cooperation, insist on resolving international conflicts by peaceful means rather than war and join hands in protecting world peace and stability; fifth, China and other nations should help one another and team up in a joint effort to take good care of the home of all human beings - Earth.

It should be noted that Hu not only expresses the sincerity of the CPC in following and faithfully abiding by international principles and the UN Charter but also states the goal it expects to achieve through its handling of major international issues. Without question, by setting this goal Hu foreshadows the way China will work on building a more reasonable and just new world order (including economic and trade rules).

As a responsible major power in today's world, China is obliged not only to fulfill and abide by international principles but also to continuously improve, adjust, complement and even amend existing international principles according to changes in world politics, the economy, and the rising level of human knowledge.

It is widely recognized that most of the international principles still in effect today originated in Europe in the second half of the 17th century. As political, industrial, scientific, and technological revolutions occurred in Europe and North America, advanced productivity and power of capital tore down national barriers and allowed nations to join the divisions of labor in various industries. This led to objective as well as subjective demand for the formulation of international principles applicable throughout the world. It was the first wave of the formulation of international principles.

A new economic environment and geopolitical change caused by the rise and fall of certain major powers following the two world wars in turn led to the arrival of a second wave of international principles. The two waves have each played a decisive role in driving human progress forward.

Today, as the world enters the multi-polar era, the rapid development of countries such as China, Russia, India and Brazil and the development of the African economy could very well signal a third wave.

In Hu's report we can see the Chinese government's goal of building a more reasonable and just world order. And the light of sincerity, confidence and rationale emanating from such expectations will not only illuminate China's path toward a responsible major power but also give hope in building a harmonious world.

The author is a researcher with the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies

(China Daily 10/30/2007 page10)