Meanwhile in China: The 10th Beijing Xiangshan Forum Seeks Global Peace & Security

While events in Palestine threaten to escalate into a major regional war that has the potential to go global, China is hosting its tenth Xiangshan Forum in Beijing with the theme, “Common Security, Lasting Peace,” with the first Plenary Session’s title clearly seen in the above photo, “Major Countries’ Responsibility and Global Cooperation.” The major event today highlighted by Global Times was the keynote speech delivered by General Zhang Youxia, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission,

who invited all parties to implement the Global Security Initiative to achieve the theme of the forum, "Common Security, Lasting Peace," and urged countries to make efforts to eliminate war chaos amid the Russian-Ukraine and the Palestine-Israel conflicts.

The Chinese military expects all parties to make joint efforts to continuously deepen security mutual-trust and optimize security architecture, enhance security governance together, promote security cooperation pragmatically and implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, build a global community of shared future and inject more certainty, stability and positive energy into a tumultuous and intertwined world, Zhang said.

Humanity has entered the 21st century in which hegemony and Cold War mentality are greatly out of accord with the times and not winning people's hearts, as people with conscience from all over the world are expecting peace, development, cooperation and win-win, Zhang said.

However, some countries insist on a zero-sum mentality in which one side must lose for the other to win, adhere to the law of the jungle, practice bloc politics and promote unilateralism that builds up walls, filling the world with the shadows of war and humanitarian disasters, Zhang said. "If you are full of hostility, there will surely be competition everywhere. If you only care about your own benefits, all shall become your opponents. If you keep suppressing others, conflicts and wars around the world will definitely arise."

Against the background of the Russian-Ukraine and the Palestine-Israel conflicts, Zhang urged all countries to make efforts to eliminate war chaos, as he accused a certain country of intentionally creating turbulence, intervening in regional affairs, interfering in others' internal affairs and plotting color revolutions, as wherever this country goes, peace and tranquility stay away.

"[Certain country] even sets up pegs everywhere and intentionally creates many geopolitical contradictions, pretending to be fair in stopping a fight but actually helping one side, making regional situations become complex and difficult to resolve. It also provides weapons and triggers proxy wars so it can reap the spoils of victory without lifting a finger," Zhang said.

Putin wasn’t afraid to name that “certain country” in his address to Russia’s Security Council yesterday. Global Times editor was very direct in his conference-related editorial, “Message delivered at Beijing Xiangshan Forum is worth pondering,” and didn’t shy away from naming names:

This year, the outside world has focused on China-US relations and the Taiwan question. The US Department of Defense sent a delegation to the Xiangshan Forum and the Chinese military issued a stern warning on the Taiwan question, both of which have received widespread attention. Many people hope to find clues about the future direction of the situation. Frankly speaking, the two issues are highly related to each other. The Taiwan question is the central issue in China-US relations, and the same is true for the relationship between the Chinese and American militaries. The most direct reason why the military interaction between the two sides has reached a low point is the US' political manipulation of the Taiwan question. The US itself is well aware of this.

Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, warned in his keynote speech on Monday that the Chinese military will never tolerate and will be relentless against anyone who dares to split Taiwan from China in any way. This statement has elicited a significant response that is worthy of careful consideration by the international community. On Chinese social media, phrases like "never tolerate," and "relentless against" have gone viral. This is not the first time China has issued such a stern warning. On the contrary, it is one of the clearest statements China has made on various international occasions in recent years, and each time it has consistently garnered strong support from the Chinese public. This scene is a strong signal in itself to external forces attempting to interfere in the Taiwan question, fully demonstrating the resolute determination of the entire Chinese nation for achieving national reunification. Some American politicians who assess whether China will "resolve the Taiwan question through the use of force" based on calculating the so-called "political gains and losses" are fundamentally misguided, and the conclusions they reach are naturally off the mark.

There have been some signs of warming in China-US relations recently, but when it comes to the Taiwan question, China's stance remains unchanged. This is not contradictory; it underscores the extreme importance of the Taiwan question to China, as it is at the core of China's core interests, and this red line can never change under any circumstances. The reason for repeatedly emphasizing this issue publicly is that some individuals continue to test the boundaries of this red line, trying to test China's bottom line. China is being candid and forthright about its true stance on the matter, which clearly indicates that there is no room for "negotiation" on matters of sovereignty. In this regard, any force willing to take risks should carefully weigh the consequences to avoid getting themselves into trouble.

The psychological deterrence effect played by the Chinese people and the Chinese People's Liberation Army by repeatedly declaring and emphasizing their determination, will and ability to fight "independence" forces and promote reunification cannot be ignored. "Do not say that you have not been forewarned." China is playing a clear card and will never be soft on the separatist behavior of Taiwan "independence" forces. It is believed that not many people will be stupid enough to think that China is just talking. Anyone who has a certain understanding of China's style knows that China always acts as it says. If the Chinese military will never tolerate, then it will definitely have the means and capabilities to not tolerate; if the Chinese military says it will never be soft-handed, then it will definitely be prepared to not be soft-handed. This applies to both Taiwan "independence forces" and external interference forces.

It is important to emphasize that China's stern warning is by no means a "warlike statement" but precisely a defense of peace. The current situation is that the US keeps pushing gunpowder into Taiwan and it is continuously increasing military deployments around China, and simultaneously promoting the narrative of "Chinese mainland's use of force against Taiwan." This combination of actions raises doubts about whether Washington is genuinely preparing for a conflict that the world cannot afford. China's warnings issued on various occasions are like a bucket of cold water poured over the heads of those war enthusiasts in Washington. Only by extinguishing their unrealistic hopes can peace across the Taiwan Straits be achieved. This is also an important message of peace that the Xiangshan Forum conveys to the world.

Clearly, if the delegation from the Outlaw US Empire didn’t get the message from the speech it would be hard to miss given the editor’s directness—provided they read it of course. Given the genuine balance of military power now existing, Imperial generals and admirals most likely understand the disparity they are at when facing China; but from their mouths, it’s very clear that a significant number of Western politicos don’t and continue pushing escalation.

Guancha’s report on the Conference paid more focus to Global South participation and the forums designed for them:

Zhao Xiaozhuo: After 17 years of development, the Beijing Xiangshan Forum has gradually developed its own characteristics, one of which is to provide a platform for developing countries to express their security concepts, security propositions and security demands.

This year this is even more obvious, with more representatives from developing countries, such as leaders of the defense sector, and leaders of the military, a considerable number of whom are from developing countries, and they can have a stronger voice on this platform.

For example, the theme of the Second Plenary Session is "The Role of Developing Countries in Global Security", which is specially designed for developing countries. The theme of the Fourth Plenary Session is "Regional Security and Development: Pathways and Goals", which is also aimed at developing countries. For developing countries, development is a bigger issue, and the relationship between development and security is also worth exploring. Regional security in Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and other regions is a very important topic in the parallel group meeting, which is also a large number of developing countries participating.

In terms of the arrangement of speeches, developing countries have also arranged relatively more than in previous sessions. Developing countries can make full use of the platform of the Beijing Xiangshan Forum to make their voices heard more and stronger.

And there’s this closing note on the military focus since this conference is devoted to producing a better understanding of China and how its foreign and military policies interact:

Observer.com: The Beijing Xiangshan Forum plays a very important role in the world's understanding of China, especially the Chinese military.

Zhao Xiaozhuo: "Hard power" such as majestic and strong is the usual image of the PLA, but this is not the whole story. On the other hand, there is "soft power".

With the development of the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, it has increasingly become the carrier of the "soft power" of the Chinese military. In addition, the "soft power" of the Chinese military is also reflected in the participation of the Chinese army in UN peacekeeping operations, the participation of the Chinese army in escorting ships in the Gulf of Aden, the earthquake relief of the Chinese army, and the Chinese hospital ship Peace Ark going to various parts of the world to save lives and help the wounded.

The Beijing Xiangshan Forum is a window for the international community to understand the Chinese military, and through this window they can understand what the Chinese military is thinking, how the Chinese military perceives the current international security challenges, and how the Chinese military can solve many thorny problems.

That last clause is quite curious, “how the Chinese military can solve many thorny problems.” The examples given are humanitarian in nature. Given the current context, is that a hint to how China might contribute to assisting/solving the Palestinian issue? China’s Global Security Initiative differs little from what’s said within the UN Charter but isn’t followed in practice by the Imperialist nations, the most important difference being the overt denial of the “right” of any nation to exert hegemony, which appears to be its main attracting feature. There’s also the overt mandate of Indivisible Security where no nation’s security is to be attained at the expense of another nation’s security. Both exist within the UN Charter but aren’t as explicitly stated, which has been the UN’s #1 problem since it began in 1945. It’s clear that as long as hegemonic nations exist the need for deterrence against them will also be required, which wastes precious resources and creates Disharmony.

Unfortunately, it seems the many current conflicts are keeping Russian media from reporting on the Conference as their POVs would be good to know. That the world’s most powerful nation economically continues to hold farsighted conferences aimed at developing Harmony is positive. It would also be positive if unnamed nations learned from the experience and changed behavior for humanity’s benefit.

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