Xiamen BRICS summit and the 'Chinese Dream'
- By Elenoire Laudieri
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The 9th BRICS Summit is held in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on September 3-5, 2017. [Xinhua] |
The outcome of the 9th BRICS summit hosted by China in the port city of Xiamen has provided clear evidence that the association of five major non-Western economies is anything but on the decline.
At the end of the summit, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa signed a joint declaration strengthening their cooperation in a wide range of sectors including economy, finance, culture, science and technology, and reaffirming their commitment to global peace, the central role of the United Nations and the rule of law in international relations.
Together with the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation held in Beijing last May, the success of the Xiamen summit has further validated President Xi Jinping's advocacy of an open global economy based on inclusiveness, shared benefits and sustainable development.
The five BRICS nations essentially embraced the guiding principles and the agenda President Xi proposed in his keynote speech at the Business Forum preceding the summit. He articulated a far-reaching vision putting BRICS at the forefront of China's efforts to meet the challenges of the current "great era of transformation and adjustment."
As he pointed out, the road to global peace and development is not going to be a smooth one as “economic globalization faces more uncertainties" and "emerging markets and developing countries find themselves in a more complex external environment."
China itself has encountered an array of domestic challenges posed by its rapid industrial development and its achievements in enhancing the living conditions of its massive population, reducing inequality, rooting out corruption and providing for an aging population vindicate its role in pursuing a better and more prosperous world and building close bonds amongst nations and peoples.
The "Chinese Dream" – the cherished aspiration to peaceful progress, prosperity and ethnic harmony inspiring China’s current domestic policies – is gradually becoming a "BRICS Dream" and ultimately a "World Dream."
In the realm of international security, the Xiamen summit was superficially described by some Indian media as a win for its side on account of the strong condemnation contained in the joint declaration of specifically-named terrorist groups based in Pakistan, a nation which enjoys a long-standing friendship with China and equally long contentious relations with India.
Yet, China has always opposed terrorism no matter where it occurs, and has always respected the United Nations Charter’s requirement of non-interference in the sovereign affairs of other nations. In this context, China's record is arguably as good if not better than other great powers.
It has voted for and adhered to UN Security Council resolutions sending peacekeeping forces to troubled areas and imposing sanctions on international lawbreakers.
Apart from its leading role in BRICS, the Xiamen summit showed China under President Xi will further expand its relationship with the outer world and it would be a mistake to view this trend as a sign of hegemonic ambitions.
China's way forward is firmly anchored in its dynamic cooperation with other markets and rests on its adherence to international rules and norms not only in trade and investments, but also security. Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and uncontrolled ethnic and civil strife are antithetic to the "Chinese Dream" and President Xi's hope for global peace and development.
Elenoire Laudieri Di Biase ( Twitter account: @ElaudierLaudier ), sinologist from the university of Ca' Foscari and Melbourne University, Australia, is an expert on international diplomacy and psychoanalysis. Senior analyst on China at the Nato Defense College Foundation.
Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
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