Peace is a human right. Peace is the enabler of all civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. As the Constitution of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization[1] reminds us: “since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.“ The United Nations recognized this right in General Assembly Resolution 39/11 of 1984 and again in Res. 71/189 of 19 December 2016. The motto of the Peace of Westphalia of 1648 deserves revisiting: Pax optima rerum. Peace is the highest good. It is also the core principle of the United Nations Charter, together with the sovereign equality of states, the self-determination of peoples, human dignity and the right to development. With its 5-point Global Governance Initiative of 2025, China is on board with the UN Charter and the vision of a shared future in peace and prosperity.
Civilization means a functioning culture of dialogue and compromise based on mutual respect and a realization of our shared humanity. We are all called to contribute to shaping a better world, built on a legal order in the service of the planet.
There are many cultures and civilizations, but all are products of the same human spirit and of our shared rationality. Ontologically we have more in common than differences that separate us. China is an old civilization which shares commonalities with all world cultures. Today China plays an increasingly important role in the world and has the opportunity to give momentum to constructive initiatives that will benefit all. It is called upon to assume greater responsibilities in the emerging multipolar world, notably in the United Nations where its influence is visibly growing.
The rotating presidency of the UN Security Council was assumed by China for this month of May 2026. China’s permanent representative to the United Nations Fu Cong, who is now guiding the Security Council, is a seasoned diplomat and no bla-blabureaucrat. His focus has been on revitalizing the authority of the UN Charter, giving concrete meaning to the mandate of the United Nations, advancing a political settlement of the Middle East issues, and promoting stability and development in African countries. He wants a more representative Security Council and a more representative United Nations where the voices of the Global Majority, of the Global South, will be better heard.
The election of a new Secretary-General will take place in the month of October at the General Assembly. A vigorous and innovative SG is crucially important in these times of rapid change in matters of security, artificial intelligence, pandemic control. Personally, I favour a woman Secretary General, and the ideal person would be Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley, but at present she is not a candidate, and she is so progressive that she would probably be vetoed by the US, UK or France. China could be a leader in the General Assembly in securing the election of a seasoned professional equipped with diplomatic skills and political savvy, a new leader who will be able to reduce confrontation and find common ground among the many competing interests of peoples and states.
China’s Global Governance Initiative (GGI)[2]
On 1 September 2025, in Tianjin, China, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) concluded its 25th summit, with the participation of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, numerous chiefs of international organizations, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn, Commonwealth of Independent States General Secretary Sergey Lebedev, and the Presidents or Prime Ministers of 24 States including Egypt, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Russia and Turkey.
The highlight of the summit was the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) outlined by Chinese President Xi Jinping, in reaffirmation of the aspirations of the “Global Majority” for an inclusive and balanced world order based on the continued validity of the UN Charter.
China’s Global Governance Initiative follows on China’s Global Development Initiative (GDI), the Global Security Initiative (GSI) and the Global Civilization Initiative. The GDI has not lost any of its validity, as it focuses on promoting international cooperation on development and the achievement of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals. This, however, can only be achieved if military-first economies are converted into human-security economies and the absurdly high military budgets are slashed[3]. It is crucial to have a paradigm shift and engage in serious negotiations aimed at demilitarization across the board.
China’s GSI encourages dialogue and consultation so as to avoid international discord. The emphasis is on prevention rather than cure. This entails a measure of pro-active optimism, a commitment to listen to the fears and concerns of all parties with a view to “finding” or better – “accommodating” a middle ground.
China’s GCI aims at promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations. This is very much in the spirit of the UNESCO constitution, to build bridges among peoples, to devote the arts, literature, music to a more profound understanding of our common origins and destinies.
The Five core commitments of China’s Global Governance Initiative constitute a plan of action solidly based on the UN Charter and the international rule of law. In order not only to survive, but to prosper and grow closer together in harmony, the world should commit to sovereign equality, as a premise of global governance, an indispensable norm for state-to-state relations. The essence of sovereign equality is that all countries, regardless of size or wealth, shall have their sovereignty and dignity respected, their domestic affairs free from external pressures or interference, the right to independently choose their social, political and economic system and development path. The second commitment concerns respect for the international rule of law as the fundamental safeguard for global governance. The concept of “exceptionalism”[4], the selective application of norms and the frequent use of double-standards undermine the authority and credibility of any system or institution[5]. The third commitment entails a shift of mindset away from the “might makes right” paradigm and a reorientation toward dialogue and multilateralism. The practice of unilateralism, in particular, the imposition of unilateral coercive measures (UCMs) must be rejected as incompatible with the purposes and principles of the United Nations[6]. Although the General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council adopt yearly resolutions condemning UCMs, they are proliferating in a culture of impunity. UCMs are not legal sanctions and should be considered crimes against humanity, bearing in mind that according to UN reports[7] and of the medical journal The Lancet, UCMs cause hundreds of thousands of deaths every year[8].
A fourth commitment reminds us of the UN people-centered approach, which is the underpinning value of global governance. Peoples of all nations are the fundamental actors in global governance and their well-being must be its ultimate benefit. The United Nations General Assembly and the Human Rights Council adopt yearly resolutions concerning the right to development and a host of other issues that seem lost in the growing militarism and escalation of conflicts at the expense of the welfare of billions of human beings.
The fifth commitment concerns the practical steps that must be taken individually and jointly to achieve real results in terms of peace and human rights. There are enough correct diagnoses, enough good rhetoric, what we now need is a coherent plan of action, good faith and the political will to make progress happen.
China’s Global Governance Initiative reflects the development of United Nations jurisprudence over the past 81 years. My own 25 Principles of International Order[9]are similarly based on the UN Charter, UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, international treaties, the case-law of the International Court of Justice, civil society initiatives, etc. We are not reinventing the wheel, but building on principles and norms that have been agreed upon. What we need is enforcement.
I dare propose, in the spirit of the GGI, GDI, CSI and GCI that China launch a Global Educational Initiative (GEI), a Global Compact on Education for Peace and Cooperation. We should be taught to respect others because of our shared humanity. We should be taught that our neighbours are not necessarily adversaries, rivals or enemies. They have the potential to be friends and partners.
Donald Trump-Xi Jinping Summit 13-15 May 2026
The Beijing Summit reflected China’s commitment to dialogue, notwithstanding the virulent Sinophobia prevalent in US government policies and media reporting. As an American, I consider Trump’s erratic foreign policy to be dangerous for the United States and more generally for all countries involved. Trump’s statements on China, Cuba, Greenland, Venezuela give reason for concern, because they are not only theatre and bombast. As Trump has publicly stated, international law does not interest him. Accordingly, the world is on notice, and all countries, including China, are well advised to be cautious and vigilant, because Trump has a track record of breaking agreements. He is not perceived as a reliable partner. On the other hand, Trump exists and will continue exercising the function of US President for two and a half more years. He is a factum to be reckoned with. China understands this, even when Trump and his administration do not seem to know much about Chinese history and traditions, the Opium Wars[10], the century of humiliation, or the millennia-old Chinese heritage.
Early in the Summit Xi-Jinping posed the question whether China and the United States can overcome the “Thucydides Trap”[11] and create a new paradigm of power relations? Xi placed the broader historical question at the centre of the state visit as an effort to steer the world’s most consequential relationship toward stability. The concept, repeatedly invoked by Xi in recent years, refers to the theory that conflict often erupts when a rising power challenges an established one. By raising it again, Xi signalled China’s view that strategic competition between Beijing and Washington need not end in confrontation if both sides choose to manage their relationship for mutual benefit in a win-win framework.
In an interview with Judge Napolitano on 15 May 2026, Professor Jeffrey Sachs[12]stated:
“Nothing consequential was agreed or decided. But I personally think the civility was a good thing. So I wouldn’t dismiss this as empty because there were no headline achievements…The United States doesn’t have any leverage over China. China wasn’t asking for much from this meeting or expecting much…but, frankly, these days when everything can go wrong, nothing went wrong in this meeting either. And the fact that the two sat for two days and talked, that there was indeed a lot of pageantry, which is what you would expect from China as a great host and a great civilization, that was fully on display. And the end result, as defined by the Chinese side, as this showing a constructive strategic stability, I think is perhaps good news for everybody. There was no dire clash. There was no attempt by either side to push the other to the cliff.”
It is therefore important to continue the dialogue between the US and China and to realize that peace among major powers depends on common sense: avoid crossing red lines, avoid showdowns.
Conclusions
As a founding member of the UN, China has long served as a key pillar of the multilateral system. We remember P.C. Chang’s significant contribution to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as the then vice-chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and an important member of the drafting committee.
China is also a key contributor to global humanitarian efforts and a supporter of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). In this spirit, Chinese President Xi Jinping has highlighted that humanitarianism is the great consensus that can unite different civilizations.
ICRC Director General Pierre Krahenbuhl echoed this statement in an interview in 2024 – “When a country like China takes a position on that issue … we want every single country in the world to take this very seriously.” Krahenbuhl noted that China was among the first signatories to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, which have been the cornerstone for upholding human dignity amid armed conflict.
China is a very old civilization. Over the centuries China has contributed much to the world and today is in a position to contribute much more, notably to mediate conflicts and advance peace and stability. In my opinion, China has positioned itself on the right side of history. This is reflected in China’s voting record in the Security Council, General Assembly and Human Rights Council[13]. To name only two important resolutions, where China played a constructive role: GA Resolution 80/250 condemning the transatlantic slave trade as a crime against humanity (25 March 2026, adopted by a vote of 123 in favour, 3 against (US, Israel, Argentina) and 52 abstentions[14]) and Resolution 48/7 of 8 October 2021 concerning the legacies and sequels of colonialism[15].
Civilization means a global order based on agreed norms, including the UN Charter, our only rules-based international order, which is akin to a world constitution[16]. The architecture of the modern world encompasses norms and monitoring mechanisms, but an implementation gap persists, which China is interested in resolving through the mechanisms of the United Nations, including the World Trade Organization.
China understands this scenario and acts accordingly, aware that the world of 1945 has evolved and that a multipolar global order has emerged. Since the creation of BRICS, the Belt and Road Initiative, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and other intergovernmental bodies, the fantasy of a unipolar world has ceased to be. Peace is indeed possible. Pax optima rerum.
Notes.
[1] https://www.unesco.org/en/legal-affairs/constitution
[2] https://www.counterpunch.org/2025/09/05/the-tianjin-summit-and-the-hope-for-a-more-just-international-order/
[3] https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/27/51
[4] https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/09/25/exceptionalism-and-international-law/
[5] https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/12/16/international-law-a-la-carte/
[6] https://worldbeyondwar.org/alfred-de-zayas-theyre-not-sanctions-and-theyre-not-legal/
UN Charter, UN Credibility and Unlawful Unilateral Coercive Measures
[7] https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-unilateral-coercive-measures
[8] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(25)00278-5/fulltext
[9] https://www.counterpunch.org/2022/11/28/principles-of-international-order/
[10] https://www.counterpunch.org/2023/11/01/is-there-such-a-thing-as-a-just-war/
[11] https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-05-15/Xi-s-Thucydides-Trap-question-frames-new-chapter-in-China-US-ties-1NaHeZdFPGw/p.html
[12] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8whXGoa7O4k
[13] https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/04/01/the-track-record-of-the-collective-west/
[14] https://docs.un.org/en/A/RES/80/250
[15] https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/RES/48/7
[16] https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2015/11/statement-alfred-maurice-de-zayas-independent-expert-promotion
