Peaceful China Initiative demonstrates potential of country's 'quiet strength': China Daily editorial

A country's strength is often measured in terms of its technological, economic and military prowess. Yet one of the most consequential measures is more prosaic: whether its people can walk home at night without fear.

In his instruction conveyed at a working conference on the Peaceful China Initiative, held in Beijing on Monday, President Xi Jinping urged efforts to advance the initiative to a higher level to ensure sustained progress in China's modernization.

The Chinese concept of ping an, translated as peaceful in the initiative, encompasses peace, stability, safety and social harmony — public goods that people expect from a responsible government, alongside education, healthcare, economic opportunity, and more.

In the instruction, Xi emphasized actions to resolutely pursue a holistic approach to national security and to uphold and strengthen the Communist Party of China's overall leadership in this area.

He also called for efforts to pursue development and safeguard security, strengthen the legal underpinning, leverage science and technology, and prevent and mitigate all kinds of risks in relevant fields, so as to continuously make the country safer, society more orderly, governance more effective, and the people more satisfied.

Xi acknowledged the progress that has been made in building a safe China since 2012, making the country one of the safest in the world.

China's institutional capacity and strength to coordinate national priorities, mobilize resources and organize governments at different levels will continue to help provide a ping an environment conducive to sustained economic and social development.

Safety has become an increasingly notable component of China's appeal to visitors from overseas. The Global Public Security Index Report (2025-26), covering 62 countries, ranked China first with a score of 84.62 out of 100.

As visa-free access expands, and more people arrive in China from overseas for study, tourism, business and cultural exchanges, many encounter something that statistics struggle to convey: the worry-free experience of taking an evening stroll, cycling after dark or running through city streets. These are ordinary pleasures for millions of Chinese, yet remain difficult to enjoy in some other countries, including some wealthy ones.

However, the task of building a ping an society is not yet finished. Extreme weather, geological disasters, workplace accidents, risks associated with emerging technologies and public-health emergencies all test the capacity of governments to protect people.

Artificial intelligence and big data offer tools for identifying risks, but also generate new vulnerabilities. No country can assume that yesterday's security arrangements will meet tomorrow's challenges.

This is why Xi's instruction matters beyond its reaffirmation of past progress. It sets out a method: balance development with security, combine punishment with prevention, address immediate dangers and their underlying causes, and strengthen both the rule of law and technological capabilities. The emphasis on early warning and risk prevention is particularly significant. Effective security governance must anticipate dangers rather than merely respond after damage has been done.

The upheavals afflicting parts of the world offer an acute reminder of what is easily overlooked in an age of geopolitical drama: peace and stability are valuable public assets.

China, with 1.4 billion people, as the world's second-largest economy and the major trading partner of more than 160 countries and regions, is a manufacturing powerhouse, a vast consumer market and a crucial link in global supply chains. A peaceful, stable, safe and harmonious China contributes to the predictability of international commerce and the security of global supply chains. Raising safety in various sectors in China to a higher standard is therefore not merely a domestic undertaking. It is also a contribution to a more stable world.

The implementation of the Peaceful China Initiative will continue to translate the country's "quiet strength" into greater confidence, opportunity and well-being for ordinary people, as well as benefits for the world.