By: Chinese Ambassador to Liberia, H.E. YIN Chengwu.
Monrovia, Liberia – In April 1955, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, Liberian President William Tubman, and representatives from 29 Asian and African countries gathered in Bandung, Indonesia, for the historic Asian-African Conference, commonly known as the Bandung Conference. At the conference,they advocated for resolving international issues through multilateralism and the principle of sovereign equality, articulating the “Solidarity, Friendship, and Cooperation” ethos now immortalized as the Bandung Spirit.
This profoundly galvanized national liberation movements across Asia, Africa and Latin America, playing a pivotal role in advancing Asia-Africa cooperation and South-South cooperation. Seven decades later, as the world has once again come to a critical crossroads, the Bandung Spirit retains its enduring vitality, continuing to offer inspiration for global development.
First, we must embrace a shared future rather than stay immune. In the face of global challenges, no country can prevail on its own. We should practice true multilateralism, advocate the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and stick to the approach of shared security, seeking common ground while shelving differences, and dialogue and consultation, so as to create favorable conditions for the development of all nations and the well-being of their peoples.
We should uphold the international system with the United Nations at its core, advocate for an equal and orderly multipolar world, and jointly safeguard global peace and security. As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China firmly opposes unilateralism, hegemonism, and protectionism, and calls on countries to adapt to the profoundly changing international landscape in the spirit of solidarity, and address the complex and intertwined security challenges with a win-win mindset.
China was the first to put its signature on the UN Charter, and Liberia was the first African nation to sign the UN Charter. We support African countries, including Liberia, in playing a greater role in resolving regional conflicts and maintaining global peace. We stand with the Global South in promoting collective self-reliance, advancing the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, and bringing benefits to the peoples of Asia, Africa and beyond.
Second, we must promote mutual learning among civilizations rather than division and isolation. The Asia-Africa region is home to over 100 countries with diverse social systems, historical cultures, and values, collectively forming a splendid tapestry of civilizations. We must reject the outdated notions of Cold War mentality and bloc confrontation, persist in seeking common ground while shelving differences, embrace openness and inclusiveness, respect the diversity of world civilizations, and promote humanity’s common values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom.
We should prioritize the preservation and innovation of civilizational heritage, strengthen international people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, support countries in exploring development paths suited to their own national conditions, respect the social systems chosen by their own peoples, and advance the peaceful coexistence and mutual prosperity of different civilizations, systems, and development models. China stands ready to work with Liberia to promote global efforts in forging new prospects for cross-cultural exchanges, civilizational synergy, and people-to-people connectivity among nations.
Third, we must pursue mutual benefit and win-win cooperation rather than zero-sum games. In today’s globalized world, nations are profoundly interconnected and interdependent. No country should pursue its hegemonic interests at the expense of others’ legitimate rights, nor place itself above the common interests of the international community. We should prioritize development and people’s livelihoods, advocate for universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, build an open world economy, and realize cooperation through joint consultation, collaborative platform-building, and shared dividends for all.
China has partnered with more than 150 nations under the Belt and Road Initiative. It has also established the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, co-founded the Initiative on International Cooperation in Open Science and proposed the ten partnership actions for joining hands to advance modernization for China and Africa, and announced eight measures to support Global South cooperation. China is also actively advancing North-South dialogue to achieve complementary strengths, vigorously spearheading international development cooperation, and promoting shared development and prosperity.
The Bandung Conference is a milestone in the solidarity and cooperation among Asian and African countries. Both China and Liberia, vital members of the Global South, have been participants in the Bandung Conference and champions of the Bandung Spirit. No matter how the international landscape evolves, China and Liberia remain steadfast friends and sincere partners to each other.
China stands ready to work with Liberia to jointly uphold the Bandung Spirit of “Solidarity, Friendship, and Cooperation,” vigorously implement the outcomes of Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), strengthen the alignment of our development strategies, and boost Liberia’s ARREST Agenda for Inclusive Development (AAID), so as to deepen mutual understanding between our peoples, harvest more fruitful results from bilateral cooperation, and elevate the China-Liberia strategic partnership to new heights.
