Xi Jinping presented a perspective to unite civilizations around a greater humanity, as wars of destruction and some of genocide spread around the globe, at the Civilizations Dialogue Ministerial Meeting, held in Beijing July 10.
“The world is, in nature, a place of diverse civilizations,” Xi said in a letter to the conference. “History has shown us that exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations are essential for civilizations to flourish and human progress to be made. In a world where transformations and turbulences are interwoven and #humanity stands at a new crossroads, there is an ever-pressing need for civilizations to transcend estrangement through exchanges, and to transcend clashes through mutual learning, Qiushi journal quoted him as saying.
In March 2023, Xi put forward his Global Civilizational Initiative (GCI), alongside his proposals for a Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative, which he proposed in 2021 and 2022. In his GCI, Xi asserted, “All civilizations created by human society are splendid. They are where each country’s modernization drive draws its strength and where its unique form comes from.” Xi emphasized that physical economic development must be accompanied, hand-in-hand, by the progress of civilization.
The July 10-11 conference brought together representatives from 140 countries, with more than 600 delegates.
Professor Zhang Weiwei of Fudan University observed at this conference that “the world doesn’t need a new civilization. It needs to learn how existing civilizations can coexist not by erasing difference, but by honoring it.” Zhang stressed that many countries, especially those in the Global South, have responded positively and warmly to China’s GCI, so that even as the world stands at a crossroads, the forces that cherish peace and seek mutual learning among civilizations remain the mainstream of the international community, Global Times reported on July 14. Zhang had been a featured speaker at the July 12-13 Schiller Institute Berlin Conference, “Man Is Not a Wolf to Man: For a New Paradigm in International Relations!” He addressed the first panel, “Cooperation between the BRICS and Europe to Implement the Oasis Plan and the Agenda 2063 for Africa.”
