Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Qin Gang and Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov jointly published a statement Nov. 26 in The National Interest magazine published in Washington, D.C., titled, “Respecting People’s Democratic Rights.” It strenuously objects to the Biden Administration’s so-called “Summit for Democracy” scheduled for Dec. 9-10 in Washington, which, the article states, will “stoke up ideological confrontation.” The joint article was also posted on the Russian and Chinese embassies’ websites. [https://washington.mid.ru/en/press-centre/news/the_national_interest_russian_chinese_ambassadors_respecting_people_s_democratic_rights/ ; http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/dshd/202111/t20211127_10454275.htm]
The piece was also appears as an unsigned Global Times article in the China/Diplomacy section, and was published in the London-based Arabic newspaper Al-Sharq al-Awsat. It says that the virtual “Summit for Democracy” that will be hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden is “An evident product of its Cold-War mentality, this will stoke up ideological confrontation and a rift in the world, creating new ‘dividing lines.'” This, it points out, contradicts the development of the modern world: “It is impossible to prevent the shaping of a global polycentric architecture but could strain the objective process. China and Russia firmly reject this move,” Global Times reports.
The event, which will reportedly include 110 invitees, is criticized as an attempt “to turn multicolor modern world into black and white divisions,” wrote Andrey Kortunov, the director general of the Russian International Affairs Council, in a Global Times op-ed on Nov. 22. “Countries should focus on running their own affairs well, not condescendingly criticizing others,” the two ambassadors wrote in their article. “There is no need to worry about democracy in Russia and China. Certain foreign governments better think about themselves and what is going on in their homes.”
