China believes that the world today is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century. In the near term, the world order formed since World War II is facing adjustments; in the long run, the multipolar model under the Westphalian system has become unsustainable.
Why does China oppose the "G2" concept? Because China has no desire to become another United States. China was once a victim of the U.S.-Soviet hegemonic rivalry. As early as 1974, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated at the Special Session of the Sixth UN General Assembly: If China becomes developed in the future and also seeks hegemony, the Chinese people and the people of the world will unite to defeat that hegemon! China's cultural gene, as stated in the I Ching, is "a group of dragons without a leader," rather than pursuing "leadership" or "dominance." Furthermore, in the age of artificial intelligence, the U.S.-style "winner-takes-all" model is both unsustainable and unpopular; the true open-source model is the future direction of development.
What is the Equal and Orderly Multipolar World Order Advocated by China?
China advocates an equal and orderly multipolar world and inclusive economic globalization. Among these, the core of an equal and orderly multipolar world is to adhere to the equality of all countries, big and small, oppose hegemonism and power politics, and effectively promote the democratization of international relations.
To ensure that the multipolarization process is generally stable and constructive, it is necessary to jointly uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, collectively adhere to universally recognized basic norms of international relations, and practice true multilateralism. This is precisely China's answer to the questions of the times.
Western scholars and officials often ask: What kind of multipolarization does China want to promote? Is multipolarization necessarily good? Based on their historical experience, multipolarization may bring instability and even conflict. Peace is regarded as an interlude between wars, and multipolar balance is only a short-lived, occasional exception. China's proposal to build an equal and orderly multipolar world stems precisely from the fact that the Western-dominated multipolarization is neither equal nor orderly. The historical multipolarization was "unequal and disorderly" for three fundamental reasons:
First, the theistic determinism and Western-centric underpinning have shaped a self-centered and arrogant civilized form in Western international relations. The so-called universal values of the West are essentially a modern value deduction of Christian theism. Determinism has given rise to the clash of civilizations theory and the end of history theory, which uphold linear evolutionism and one-sidedly advocate the "end of history." This self-centered perspective means that international politics in the Western context is not truly world politics. Today, the Western-dominated global governance faces problems such as solidified first-mover advantages, rule lock-in, and path dependence, which have aroused widespread dissatisfaction among Global South countries. Western multilateralism is an order led by the United States and the West, based on alliance systems and characterized by value exclusivity. In recent years, it has further advocated a "rules-based international order," attempting to make up for its insufficient strength with so-called "rules." Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, complained at the UN General Assembly last year that "the world is becoming more multipolar, but multilateralism is weakening." His core appeal is that multipolarization has enhanced China's influence, squeezed Europe's space, and failed to reflect the EU's normative dominance.
Second, the axiomatic assumption of the inherent evil of human nature. The Christian doctrine of original sin, reflected at the human level, holds that human nature is inherently evil and power is inherently evil. Therefore, "checking power with power" has become the golden rule of the Western world. The selfishness of human nature is deduced as the exclusivity of national interests, the anarchy of the international community, and a self-help system. The European Renaissance and Enlightenment promoted the liberation of human nature from the divine, and the Thirty Years' War released the national character, giving birth to modern international relations concepts—this is precisely the starting point of realist international relations theory: human nature is inherently evil, so power is inherently evil; the assertion of human nature leads to the assertion of national character, which in turn triggers barbaric external expansion, plunder, and colonization. Its basic logic is "pursuing security through power and interests through strength." This self-centered thinking determines that the West prefers minilateralism or unipolar-dominated multilateralism. The EU's advocacy of "unity in diversity" is seemingly similar to the "harmony in diversity" in traditional Chinese culture, but their connotations are fundamentally different.
Third, the West's inability to adapt to civilizational transformation. Human civilization is moving from an industrial and commercial civilization to a digital and ecological civilization, and the West has shown obvious incompatibility in this transformation process, which is also an important connotation of the profound changes unseen in a century. Therefore, China not only needs to respond to changes in the Western-dominated world pattern but also assume greater responsibility for leading the transformation of human civilization—this is an inherent requirement of building a community with a shared future for mankind and a historical mission of creating a new form of international political civilization.
In a word, the international relations talked about by the West are essentially relations within the West, which are difficult to escape the historical cycle. Faced with the rise of the non-Western world, they put forward remarks such as the "China threat theory," the "tragedy of great power politics," and the "Thucydides trap." The root cause is that the Western-dominated international relations system cannot accommodate the rise of the non-Western world and the accompanying profound changes unseen in a century. The hierarchical structure and confrontational inequality formed by the Western historical cycle are the multipolarization of the old civilized form; what China advocates is an equal, restrained, and peaceful international relations. An equal and orderly multipolar world conforms to the principle of "from the inside out"—only when domestic governance is effective can we avoid the spillover of troubles and reduce negative externalities. Western international relations are an extension of domestic competitive logic. From the original scarce civilization to the modern expansionist Christian civilization, combined with the capital expansion in the era of globalization, it will inevitably lead to conflicting and disorderly multipolarization.
In summary, "equality" must not only solve the problem of unequal dependence within the system but also address the dilemma that sovereign equality becomes empty talk due to unequal capabilities; "order" must not only safeguard the post-war international order based on the purposes of the UN Charter and international law but also resolve the insufficient representation of Global South countries (accounting for more than 80% of the world's population) in the international community and the need to enhance the authority and effectiveness of the United Nations. This order, aimed at the I Ching's "a group of dragons without a leader" and adhering to true multilateralism, is the core connotation of a community with a shared future for mankind.
Why Advocate an Equal and Orderly Multipolar World Order?
An equal and orderly multipolar world order specifically addresses three chaotic phenomena: "unequal but orderly," "equal but disorderly," and "unequal and disorderly," while exposing the "three Cs hypocrisy" of Western views on equality: Created (divine endowment), Capital-driven (capital-driven), and Coalition of like-minded countries (ideological alliances).
Equality: From the Equality of All Beings and Gods to the Equality of All Countries
Equality in the Chinese context includes three dimensions:
1.Equality of origin: Extending from the Buddhist concept of "equality of all beings" and the Chinese world view of "equality of all gods" to the "equality of all countries" in modern international relations. Take the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as an example. The original draft by the United States began with "all men are created equal." Indian scholar Dr. Hansa Mehta revised it to "all men and women." Chinese scholar Pengchun Chang changed "created" to "born," establishing the core principle of "born equal" and abandoning the religious overtones of "divinely created equality."2.Equality of process: China advocates that all countries should participate in decision-making "at the table," and problems are contained "in the menu" to be solved together; rather than some countries occupying the "table" while others are reduced to the dominated "menu."3.Equality of outcome: Pursuing equality in sovereign capabilities, rather than mere formal sovereign equality in legal terms. For this reason, China promotes common modernization of the world through the Belt and Road Initiative, practicing the concept of "Three Impartialities" from The Book of Rites·Confucius at Leisure—"Heaven covers all without partiality, Earth bears all without partiality, the sun and moon shine on all without partiality. Upholding these three, one serves the world."
Order
From order and sustainability to fairness and rationality, China opposes empty talk about a "rules-based order." The key is to clarify three questions: What are the rules? Who formulates the rules? How to implement the rules? The world order advocated by China is essentially open and inclusive, a fair order truly belonging to the whole world—not confrontational conflict, not starting anew, let alone replacing the United States as a new hegemon, but ending hegemony itself. In particular, it is necessary to abandon the U.S.-led alliance system, which often creates problems: NATO should have been dissolved after the Cold War but continued to expand eastward, ultimately leading to the Ukraine crisis; the dependent relations under the alliance system also make the so-called "strategic autonomy" empty talk.
What is "orderly"? In terms of origin, order is not a "Pax Americana" or "Pax Occidentalis," but an inherently generated, fair and reasonable order, not an externally imposed one;In terms of procedure, order emphasizes extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, improving norms in the process of development and promoting development in the process of standardization. It is different from the U.S. logic of "winner-takes-all" and the EU's "normative power" model of "norms first."In addition, an equal and orderly multipolar world must be based on inclusive economic globalization and guaranteed by diverse and harmonious cultural diversity. Therefore, China has successively proposed the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative, and the Global Governance Initiative. In accordance with the five-element philosophy of "metal, wood, water, fire, and earth," China will propose the Global Ecological Initiative in the future to jointly promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
Behind this lies the wisdom of a community with a shared future for mankind intertwined with political multipolarization and economic globalization.
How to Build an Equal and Orderly Multipolar World Order?
Building an equal and orderly multipolar world order is a gradual reform process, not a radical revolution. Just like hatching a chick: if the egg is broken from the outside, it will only become food; only when the shell breaks naturally from the inside can a new life be nurtured.
In 2006, I wrote an article titled "Preventing the United States from Declining Too Fast," and the evolution of the world order today has confirmed this judgment. The policies of the Trump administration have accelerated the loosening of the old order from within, and we need to guard against the impact of this process.
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) proposed by China is a vivid practice of an equal and orderly multipolar world. AIIB President Jin Liqun once stated that "there has never been a veto (No to no)"—China holds the veto power but has never used it; although China is the largest contributor, the headquarters is located in Beijing, and the first president is Chinese, the main beneficiaries of the AIIB are countries such as India. Its operation fully follows the rules of international multilateral financial institutions, and even deliberately avoids a "Sinicization" tendency. Similarly, China's Belt and Road Initiative, the "BRICS Plus" and "SCO Plus" models, as well as the concept of "AI Plus," all adhere to this core logic, always adhering to extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and rejecting hegemonic dominance.
(Complemented and improved based on the original speech and the discussions at the conference)
Author: Wang Yiwei is Jean Monnet Chair Professor, Professor of the School of International Studies and Senior Fellow of CCG, Director of the Institute of International Affairs and Director of the Center for EU Studies at Renmin University of China.
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