Experts and scholars exchange views at the symposium on Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, which was held in Beijing on Thursday. Photo: Courtesy of IDCPC

Co-hosted by the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (IDCPC) and the Guangming Daily Press, the symposium on the theory of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy was held in Beijing on Thursday.

Universities, research institutes and media from all over China were invited to participate in the conference, and about 60 experts and scholars held in-depth exchanges.

A diverse range of topics were discussed at the forum, such as the scientific outlook and theoretical system of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, the philosophical basis and cultural origin of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, and the characteristics of the era and significance of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy to the world.

Song Tao, minister of IDCPC, pointed out at the opening of the symposium that Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy profoundly answered major theoretical and practical issues of China's diplomatic work in the new era, and is also the fundamental principle and guideline of China's diplomatic work in the new era.

Further studying, publicizing, and implementing 

Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy is the most important political task for diplomatic work now and for the future, and is also the key to charting a new course for major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, said Song.

China has experienced rapid economic growth for 40 years since the implementation of the reform and opening-up. China is now the world's second largest economy and is expected to overtake the US economy in 10 years. On the other hand, the rise in trade protectionism and unilateralism also poses a threat to the world's stability and development.

Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy emphasizes that it is necessary to coordinate the overall domestic and international situations, and aims to fulfill the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation domestically and to achieve peace, development and human progress on the world level, said Song.

It promotes forming relations of mutual respect, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation between China and the world, Song noted, emphasizing that China should uphold multilateralism, promote free trade and investment facilitation, and actively lead the transformation of the global governance system to deal with the US unilateralism, protectionism, and bullying.

Zhang Zheng, chief editor of the Guangming Daily Press, pointed out that Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy has a broad space for a community with a shared future for humanity to develop, and he firmly believes that win-win cooperation should be the basic policy orientation of countries in handling international affairs not only in the economic field, but also in the fields of politics, security, and culture.

Many participants at the symposium think that China should play a bigger role in today's international affairs and take responsibility for promoting peace, development and progress of all mankind, which many experts think is different from diplomacy of other major countries.

New responsibility

While answering a question about the difference between Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy and China's previous diplomacy, Wang Fan, deputy dean of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Thursday that "Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy asks China to make a major contribution to humanity, and China must have such a historical mission and responsibility."

"China is part of the international community and is closely connected with the outside world. China's interests have also spread globally, which requires China to have an international perspective. China's development will foster the development of the world, and peace and stability in the world will also guarantee China's development," Wang noted.

Luan Jianzhang, director of the Research Office at IDCPC, said that the Western dissatisfaction with China's rise is inevitable as they did not expect to see a country to grow as rapidly as China has, while answering the question about how Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy responds to the questions of the West thinking China has become increasingly tough and aggressive.

"We used to be modest when dealing with international affairs, but we started to engage in deeper participation in global governance and lead the reform of globalization after the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China due to our strength and actual need," said Luan.
Newspaper headline: New diplomatic direction