Developing countries urged to help shape fairer global governance

As the global governance system faces growing strains, officials and experts called on Wednesday for stronger adherence to international law and a greater role for developing countries in shaping a more just and equitable international order.

They made the remarks at the 4th Forum on Developing Countries and International Law in Beijing, where discussions focused on how international law can help sustain peace, advance shared prosperity and make global governance more inclusive.

Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Hua Chunying said international law is a crucial guarantee for building a more just and equitable global governance system, as unilateralism and hegemonism continue to disrupt world peace and security, undermine the authority of the United Nations and shake the foundations of international law.

Against this backdrop, Hua said, China proposed the Global Governance Initiative last September, which has been welcomed and supported by 160 countries and international organizations in less than a year.

She called for upholding sovereign equality and the authority of the UN Charter, improving international rules, practicing multilateralism, advancing people-centered and shared development, and taking concrete actions to strengthen solidarity among Global South countries.

Hua also rejected politicizing, weaponizing and overstretching security concepts in economic, trade and technological cooperation, saying such moves disrupt normal international economic and trade order, undermine industrial and supply chain security, and harm other countries' legitimate development rights and interests.

Kamalinne Pinitpuvadol, secretary-general of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization, said the international rule of law remains an essential safeguard for developing countries, especially at a time when no single state can address global challenges alone.

The question today is "not whether international law remains relevant, but whether we are prepared to work together to uphold it, strengthen it, and make it meaningful in practice," he said.

Hajer Gueldich, legal counsel of the African Union, said in a video address that the main challenge facing the international legal order is not the absence of rules, but whether that order can continue to command confidence.

The rule of law cannot be sustained by legal texts alone, she said, adding that it depends on trust in institutions and respect for commitments made in good faith.

"A truly universal legal order cannot be constructed through exclusion. It must be built through participation."

Ong Tee Keat, president of the Belt and Road Initiative Caucus for the Asia-Pacific, said the Global South's concerns over international law and global governance are rooted not only in sovereignty, but also in development and systemic fairness.

"True peace cannot be sustained in a global environment defined by severe economic disparities and systemic under-development," he said.

He added that China's Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative, Global Civilization Initiative and Global Governance Initiative form a mutually reinforcing framework that responds to the Global South's demand for peace, development, fairness and more inclusive global governance.

Mario Oyarzabal, legal adviser to the Argentine Foreign Ministry and a member of the United Nations International Law Commission, said a more just international order must be built on the consent and genuine participation of all states, rather than shaped by a limited group of powers.

The engagement of developing countries in the international legal order is essential to its universality and legitimacy, he said.

Argentina and China share a commitment to multilateralism, the central role of the United Nations and the peaceful settlement of disputes, Oyarzabal said. Argentina recognizes and respects the one-China principle, he added, saying this reflects his country's commitment to territorial integrity.