On April 21, Chairman Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2022, proposing for the first time a Global Security Initiative (全球安全倡议). Under the traditional Western notion of security and the political dominance of Western countries led by the United States, the world situation is continuously turbulent, with an endless stream of war and conflict, sluggish economic recovery, and stagnation in global development. The international and regional security issues brought on by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the game between major countries have become the focus of global attention. In this context, the theoretical significance and epochal value of the Global Security Initiative are self-evident.
4月21日,习近平主席在博鳌亚洲论坛2022年年会开幕式发表主旨演讲,首次提出全球安全倡议。在西方传统安全观及以美国为首的西方国家政治主导下,世界局势持续动荡,战乱冲突此起彼伏,经济复苏缓慢乏力,全球发展陷入停滞。俄乌冲突、大国博弈所引发的国际和地区安全问题成为全球关注的焦点。在此背景下,全球安全倡议的理论意义和时代价值不言而喻。
The Western-dominated World Order Is Filled with War and Conflict
西方主导的世界秩序充满战争和冲突
Whether from a historical or contemporary perspective, security issues are the greatest challenge that threatens human society. Under the combined influence of changes unseen in a century and a once-in-a-century pandemic, the global security situation is deteriorating at an accelerated pace and the world is becoming less and less peaceful. In this context, the proposal of the Global Security Initiative comes at just the right time.
无论从历史还是当下看,安全问题都是威胁人类社会的最大挑战。在百年变局与世纪疫情叠加影响下,全球安全形势加速恶化,世界正变得越来越不太平。在此背景下,全球安全倡议的提出正当其时。
I. The History of the Western-dominated World Is a History of War and Conflict
一、西方主导的世界历史就是一部战争冲突史
Since the modern era, Western powers have increasingly become the dominant powers ruling the world by virtue of their first-mover advantages in the military and economic fields. From the perspective of security, the history of the world under Western dominance is one of constant and unrelenting war and conflict. In his book Krieg und Kapitalismus (War and Capitalism), German sociologist Werner Sombart pointed out that, between the 14th and 15th centuries, England and France were at war for 100 years; in the 16th century, Europe had only 25 years of peace, and in the 17th century this number fell to 21 years. That is to say, in these two hundred years, 154 years were years of war. The Netherlands was at war for 116 of the 145 years from 1568 to 1713. In the book The Sources of Social Power, the British scholar Michael Mann pointed out that for three-quarters of the time from 1494 to 1975, European powers were staging wars and the time free from war did not surpass 25 years. By contrast, East Asia enjoyed 300 years of peace between 1590 and 1894, with only a few relatively small bilateral wars. Obviously, compared with the other regions of the world (at least compared to East Asia), the world dominated by Western powers has been filled with wars and conflicts. In the process of foreign conquest, the Western powers became more aggressive and eager to resort to war and violence, ultimately creating a savage and bloody hierarchical world system with the “law of the jungle” as its underpinning.
近代以来,西方列强凭借其在军事和经济领域的先发优势,日渐成为统治世界的主导力量。从安全角度看,西方主导下的世界历史是一部不折不扣的战争与冲突史。德国社会学家维尔纳·桑巴特在《战争与资本主义》中指出,14—15世纪期间,英国与法国争斗了100年;在16世纪,欧洲只有25年的太平时光,而这一数字在17世纪缩短至21年。也就是说,在这两百年里有154年处于战乱。荷兰从1568—1713年的145年中,有116年在打仗。英国学者迈克尔·曼在《社会权力的来源》一书中指出,欧洲列强在1494—1975年有四分之三的时间在策动战争,完全没有战争的时间不超过25年。相比之下,东亚地区在1590—1894年间享有300年的和平,仅仅出现了几次规模相对较小的两国间战争。很显然,与世界其他地区相比(至少与东亚地区相比),西方列强主导下的世界充满了战争与冲突。西方列强在对外征伐过程中更加穷兵黩武,热衷于诉诸战争和暴力,并最终塑造出一个以“丛林法则”为底色的野蛮而血腥的等级性世界体系。
On the surface, the Western powers have maintained their dominant position in world politics for hundreds of years by virtue of their military superiority and foreign conquests. However, the ubiquitous zero-sum games and military conflicts have forced human society as a whole to suffer incalculable disasters and losses. According to statistics, between 1871 and 1914, Britain fought 30 colonial wars. During this period, Britain, France, and the Netherlands fought at least 100 wars. These colonial wars caused the deaths of 280,000 to 300,000 Europeans, while up to 50–60 million people from the colonized areas lost their lives.
表面看,西方列强凭借军事优势和对外征伐,在世界政治中维系了长达数百年的优势地位,但无处不在的零和博弈与战乱冲突,使整个人类社会遭受了难以估量的灾难和损失。据统计,1871—1914年间,英国进行了30场殖民战争。在此期间,英国、法国和荷兰至少打了100场战争。这些殖民战争造成了28万—30万欧洲人死亡,而被殖民地区丧生的民众则高达5000万—6000万人。
In the end, enamored with using war to solve problems, the Western powers also sank themselves to a dangerous self-destructive position. World War I was a worldwide war waged by imperialist countries to redefine their spheres of influence. In this war, casualties at the Battle of the Somme alone exceeded 1.3 million. During World War I, millions of young men in Europe died on the battlefield, and many of the achievements of human civilization were destroyed in the war. After witnessing firsthand the scenes of this self-destructive war in the Western world, the German scholar Spengler completed his book The Decline of the West, and pessimistically predicted that Western civilization was on the decline.
热衷于用战争解决问题的西方列强最终也陷入自我毁灭的危险境地。第一次世界大战是帝国主义国家为重新划分势力范围进行的世界性战争。在这次战争中,仅索姆河战役伤亡人数就超过了130万。整个一战期间,欧洲有数百万青壮年死于战场,大量人类文明成果毁于战火。德国学者斯宾格勒在亲眼目睹了西方世界这种自我毁灭式的战争场景后,完成了《西方的没落》一书,并悲观地预言西方文明正在走向衰落。
World War II was, to a certain extent, a continuation of World War I. The level of industrialization was changing with each passing day, driving unprecedented increases in the lethality and destructiveness of various weapons of war. As a result, the catastrophe caused to human society by World War II was far greater than that of World War I. In 1945, at the end of World War II, Germany’s gross domestic product fell to its 1890 level, and Britain went from being a creditor to a debtor nation. From 1946 to 1947, about 100 million Europeans had to subsist on rations of 1,500 kcal per day. Facts tell us that relying on war to achieve hegemonic goals is ultimately counterproductive. As the ancient Roman scholar Cicero said: “Most people think that the achievements of war are more important than those of peace; but this opinion needs to be corrected.”
第二次世界大战某种程度上是一战的延续。工业化水平日新月异,使各种战争武器的杀伤力和破坏性空前提升,由此导致二战给人类社会造成的劫难远大于一战。1945年二战结束时,德国国内生产总值跌至1890年时的水平,英国从一个债权国变成了负债国。1946—1947年,约有1亿欧洲人只能靠每天领取1500千卡热量的口粮来维持生活。事实告诉我们,指望诉诸战争实现霸权目标,最终只会适得其反。正如古罗马学者西塞罗所说:“绝大多数人认为,从战争中获得的东西要比在和平环境中获得的东西有价值,其实这是错误的。”
II. A More Turbulent World Under the Leadership of the United States
二、美国主导下的世界更加动荡
After World War II, the emergence of nuclear weapons and the accompanying “balance of terror” greatly limited the possibility of a world war. During the 50-year Cold War, despite the saber-rattling between the United States and the Soviet Union, both sides exercised restraint. This gave rise to a rare intermission between wars throughout the world. The U.S.-Soviet Cold War was to some extent a “cold peace.”
二战后,核武器的出现与随之而来的“恐怖平衡”极大抑制了爆发世界性战争的可能。在长达50年的冷战期间,尽管美苏剑拔弩张,但双方均较为克制,由此使世界出现了难得的战争间歇期。美苏冷战某种程度上就是一种“冷和平”。
However, the collapse of the Soviet Union made the United States increasingly militant and belligerent as a result of the loss of its external counterweight. The five local wars that broke out after the Cold War (the Gulf War, Kosovo War, Afghanistan War, Iraq War, and Libyan War) were all initiated or led by the United States. At the same time, the United States has continued to intensify its encirclement and containment of China and Russia. In 1989, Deng Xiaoping said: “I hoped that the Cold War would come to an end. But I’m disappointed now. It looks possible that one Cold War has ended and two more have begun, with one directed against the Global South, or the Third World, and the other against socialism.” According to public information such as that from the U.S. Congressional Record and the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, during the 111 years from 1890 to 2001, the United States initiated 133 military interventions.
然而,苏联解体使美国因失去外部制衡而变得日益黩武好战。冷战后爆发的五场局部战争(海湾战争、科索沃战争、阿富汗战争、伊拉克战争、利比亚战争),均由美国发动或主导。与此同时,美国对中国和俄罗斯的围堵与遏制力度也在持续加剧。邓小平在1989年曾指出:“我希望冷战结束,但现在我感到失望。可能是一个冷战结束了,另外两个冷战又已经开始。一个是针对整个南方、第三世界的,另一个是针对社会主义的。”美国《国会记录》和《美国国会图书馆国会研究项目》等公开资料显示,1890—2001年的111年间,美国共采取了133项军事干预行动。
In recent years, the transfer of power among major countries has accelerated, and the world has begun to experience great changes unseen in a century. On the one hand, the relative decline of Western countries led by the United States is apparent. The financialization and hollowing out of its economy have caused the United States to show indications of a transition from prosperity to decline. At the same time, after the “9/11” incident, the United States launched the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq in quick succession, leading to the accelerated decline of its soft and hard power. On the other hand, the rise of emerging economies represented by China is apparent. Historical experience shows that periods of power transfer are often also periods of frequent geopolitical contradictions. The Italian historian Giovanni Arrighi argues that capital accumulation is positively correlated with war. Since the rise of capitalism, we have gone through at least three cycles of accumulation. Each shift in the cycle of capital accumulation (actually a transfer of power) is ultimately resolved through large-scale war. In the eyes of the United States and other Western powers, power is the ability to force other countries to act according to their own will. This determines the scarcity and exclusivity of hegemony. The United States will never allow any country to attain a position of equality with itself, so it has continuously increased its efforts to encircle and contain emerging powers such as China and Russia.
近年来,大国权力加速转移,世界进入百年未有之大变局。一方面,以美国为首的西方国家相对衰落趋势明显。经济金融化、空心化使美国出现由盛转衰的征兆。与此同时,“9·11”事件后美国接连发动阿富汗战争和伊拉克战争,导致其软硬实力加速衰落。另一方面,以中国为代表的新兴经济体崛起态势明显。历史经验表明,权力转移期往往也是地缘矛盾多发期。意大利历史学家乔万尼·阿瑞吉认为,资本积累与战争具有正相关性。资本主义兴起以来最少经历了三个积累周期,每次资本积累周期转换(实际也是权力转移),最终都是通过大规模战争解决。在美国等西方列强看来,权力就是强迫他国按照本国意志行事的能力,由此决定了霸权具有稀缺性和排他性。美国绝不允许任何国家与美国平起平坐,因此不断加大对中、俄等新兴大国的围堵和遏制力度。
On the surface, the Russia-Ukraine conflict that broke out in February 2022 appeared to be initiated by a Russian attack, but it was actually the result of the U.S. promotion of NATO’s eastward expansion and the squeezing of Russia’s strategic space. Fundamentally, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is of a hegemonic and anti-hegemonic nature and is also a battle between the old and new systems in the bigger context of an international power transfer. After the conflict broke out, the United States and other Western countries constantly fanned the flames, using the provision of military aid to Ukraine and the staging of a “proxy war,” with the aim of prolonging the war as long as possible to profit from it.
2022年2月爆发的俄乌冲突,表面看是俄罗斯主动发难,实则是美国推动北约东扩、挤压俄罗斯战略空间引发的结果。从根本上看,俄乌冲突具有霸权与反霸权性质,也是国际权力转移大背景下的新旧体系之战。冲突爆发后,美国等西方国家不断煽风点火,通过向乌克兰提供军事援助,策动“代理人战争”,其目的就是尽可能延长战争时间,借此从中渔利。
III. The World Order Currently Stands at a Dangerous Crossroads
三、世界秩序正处于危险的十字路口
The United States sees waging war as a lucrative “good business” but, for the whole world, war is an unmitigated catastrophe. A 2018 study found that the United States has been responsible for at least 20 million deaths in 37 victim countries since the end of World War II, including 10-15 million deaths for which it is directly responsible. It is no exaggeration to say that it is the United States that is the greatest threat to world peace and development.
美国将发动战争视为有利可图的“好生意”,但对整个世界却是不折不扣的灾难性事件。2018年的一项研究表明,自二战结束以来,美国至少要对37个受害国的2000万人的死亡负责,其中包括对1000万—1500万人的死亡直接负责。不夸张地说,美国才是世界和平与发展的最大威胁。
For countries around the world, the maintenance of peace and stability is crucial. Security is the precondition and foundation of development. A stable and peaceful international environment is conducive to all countries promoting their economic prosperity and social development, thus forming a virtuous circle where security and development promote each other. On the contrary, a poor security situation will greatly damage local business environments; high military expenditures will directly squeeze out investment in fields related to the people’s wellbeing; and regional conflicts and local wars will leave each of the warring countries crippled and reverse economic gains made over many years. In addition, a lag in development will exacerbate political instability and regional turmoil, causing countries to fall into a vicious circle of “the more chaotic, the poorer—the poorer, the more chaotic.” As they say, “well-governed countries are generally rich, while chaotic countries are generally poor.”
对世界各国来说,维护和平与稳定至关重要。安全是发展的前提和基础。稳定安宁的国际环境,有利于各国推动经济繁荣和社会发展,并由此形成安全与发展相互促进的良性循环。相反,安全形势不佳会极大破坏当地营商环境;军费开支居高不下直接挤占民生领域投入;地区冲突和局部战争使交战国两败俱伤,多年来取得的经济成果毁于一旦。此外,发展滞后又会加剧政权不稳和地区动荡,使各国陷入“越乱越穷——越穷越乱”的恶性循环,正所谓“治国常富,而乱国常贫”。
In the context of economic globalization, countries are increasingly interdependent, traditional security and non-traditional security are intertwined, and international security and domestic security influence each other. When it comes to wars and conflicts originally belonging to the traditional security and international security fields, their impact is not only on the growth and decline of national power and changes in the international structure, they also produce huge spillover effects and secondary catastrophes, bringing disaster to the entire world. For instance, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has not only caused a large number of casualties and the destruction of infrastructure in Ukraine, it has also led to high international energy prices and frequent food supply shortage crises in many countries, further slowing down world economic recovery.
经济全球化背景下,各国相互依存度越来越高,传统安全与非传统安全相互交织,国际安全与国内安全相互影响。原本属于传统安全和国际安全领域的战争与冲突,其影响不仅限于国力消长和国际格局变动,还产生巨大的外溢效应和次生灾难,殃及整个世界。例如,此次俄乌冲突不仅造成乌克兰大量人员伤亡、基础设施被毁,还导致国际能源价格居高不下、多国粮食供应短缺危机频发,使世界经济复苏再次放缓。
What is even more worrying is that many factors, such as the continued spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the gradual slowdown of the global economy, and the now protracted nature of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, are superimposed on each other. As a result, the breakup of the originally highly integrated world political and economic landscape has accelerated, potential contradictions and uncertain factors continue to emerge, and imbalances, disorder, and anomie in various fields have intensified on a global scale. A series of dangerous trends have emerged in the current world landscape, such as intensifying contradictions between major countries, the emergence of political camps, economic fragmentation, security self-help, and values-based confrontations. Once these long-accumulating contradictions pass the breaking point, it may be that there are unanticipated large-scale wars and conflicts. As Chairman Xi Jinping has said: “The themes of the era of peace and development are facing serious challenges, and the world is neither peaceful nor tranquil.” If we are to eliminate the root causes of war and build a better world, we must find a new security framework that embodies a new concept of governance.
更令人担忧的是,新冠肺炎疫情持续蔓延、全球经济日渐放缓以及俄乌冲突长期化等诸多因素相互叠加,使原本高度融合的世界政治经济格局加速分裂,潜在矛盾和不确定性因素不断涌现,世界范围内各领域失衡、失序、失范现象加剧。当前世界格局也出现了大国矛盾白热化、政治阵营化、经济碎片化、安全自助化、价值对立化等一系列危险趋势。这些长期积蓄的矛盾一旦超过临界点,便可能出现意想不到的大规模战争和冲突。正如习近平主席所说:“和平与发展的时代主题面临严峻挑战,世界既不太平也不安宁。”要想消除战争根源,构建更加美好的世界,必须寻找一种能够体现新治理理念的新安全框架。
The Global Security Initiative is an Effective Path to Relieve the Global Security Dilemma
全球安全倡议是纾解全球安全困境的有效路径
As the once-in-a-century pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict intersect, the world dominated by a traditional Western notion of security is facing unprecedented turbulence and uncertainty. Unbalanced global development and increasingly apparent international contradictions have spawned more unstable factors and international security issues. The traditional Western security concept with bullying the weak and protecting oneself at the expense of others as its core is arousing the dissatisfaction and opposition of more countries and peoples around the world. Against the backdrop of the accelerated adjustment of the international landscape, countries around the world, and developing countries in particular, are urgently calling for the establishment of a new security concept based on equality and mutual trust on a global scale. Based on this, the Global Security Initiative, which aims at safeguarding the security interests of a wider range of people around the world, was born.
在世纪大流疫与俄乌冲突相互交织之际,西方传统安全理念主导的世界面临着前所未有的动荡与不确定性。全球发展不平衡与愈发显现的国际矛盾催生出更多不稳定因素及国际安全问题。西方以恃强凌弱、舍他保己为内核的传统安全观引发世界更多国家和民众的不满与反对。在国际格局加速调整大背景下,世界各国特别是发展中国家迫切呼吁在全球范围内树立以平等互信为基础的新安全理念。基于此,旨在维护全球更广泛人民安全利益的全球安全倡议应运而生。
I. Disadvantages of Traditional Western Security Concepts Are Apparent
一、西方传统安全观弊端凸显
The frequent occurrence of wars and conflicts in the international system dominated by the West is directly related to the politics of strength in which Western countries believe. The values of power politics are deeply rooted in the history and thought of Western countries. The Western academic classic History of the Peloponnesian War records a negotiation between the Athenians and the Melians. The Athenians, having the upper hand, summed up the situation frankly: “The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” These remarks express fully the hegemonic mentality of Western countries to use strength to take advantage of the weak. Their admiration for force means that Europeans in their interactions with non-Western countries often use military might as their main reference point for evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of non-Western nations.
西方主导下的国际体系之所以频频出现战争和冲突,与西方国家信奉的实力政治直接相关。在西方国家历史和思想中,强权政治的价值观可谓根深蒂固。西方学术经典《伯罗奔尼撒战争史》记载了一段雅典人与弥罗斯人的谈判内容。处于优势的雅典人说得非常露骨:“强者能够做他们有权力做的一切,弱者只能接受他们必须接受的一切。”这番话将西方国家恃强凌弱的霸权心态表达得淋漓尽致。对武力的推崇,使欧洲人在与非西方国家交往中,经常将军事威力作为评价非西方民族优劣的主要参照标准。
Realism is the most popular and accepted theory of international relations in modern Western countries. This theory views the international community as being in a state of anarchy, with countries having a strong sense that they are responsible for their own security and pursuing the maximization of their own interests motivated by fear, interest, or prestige. In the view of Western realist theorists, the pursuit of survival and power is the ultimate goal of a state’s existence. Hans Morgenthau, a representative of classical realism, believes that the goal of competition among nations is to compete for power, maintain power, and display power. In Man, the State, and War: A Theoretical Analysis, Kenneth Waltz, a well-known scholar of neorealism, holds that the origin of force lies in international anarchy. The root causes of war can be generalized into three situations: defects of human nature, defects of the state, and defects of international society (anarchy). Meanwhile, the offensive realism that has emerged in recent years, while advocating the pursuit of power, is also developing more aggressive policy propositions. This is especially true of neoconservatism in the United States. Theory itself is not politics, but once the theory is embodied in national policy, it will have a massive influence on real-world politics. To a certain extent, it is precisely because of the widespread adoption of various specious Western theoretical propositions that the international security dilemma continues to worsen, making today’s world a “defective world” (坏世界) in which the few benefit and the many suffer.
现实主义是当代西方国家流行最广、接受度最高的国际关系理论。该理论将国际社会视为无政府状态,各国出于恐惧、利益或威望,强化安全自助意识并追求本国利益最大化。在西方现实主义理论家看来,追求生存和强大是国家存在的终极目标。经典现实主义的代表人物汉斯·摩根索认为,国家间竞争的目标就是争夺权力、保持权力和显示权力。新现实主义知名学者肯尼思·华尔兹在《人、国家与战争:一种理论分析》一书中认为,武力的滥觞在于国际无政府状态。战争的根源可概括为三种情形:坏的人性、坏的国家和坏的国际社会(无政府状态)。而近些年出现的进攻性现实主义在主张追求权力的同时,其政策主张也变得更加咄咄逼人,美国的新保守主义更是如此。理论本身并非政治,但理论一旦体现为国家政策,便会对现实政治产生巨大影响。在某种程度上,正是由于各种似是而非的西方理论主张大行其道,才使国际安全困境持续加剧,使当今世界变成少数人受益、多数人受损的“坏世界”。
Western countries observe and handle world affairs based on the values of individualism and selfish departmentalism (本位主义). This easily leads to the formation of a you-die-I-survive zero-sum mentality and a Cold War mentality, a narrow nationalism in which one’s own country is paramount, and even a hegemonism and power politics where the strong take advantage of the weak. The problem is that the world has always been an organic whole, and states are only parts of this organic whole. Chairman Xi Jinping has pointed out: “Today, the development of the international community has become a complex, delicate, and organic machine. Tearing down one part will cause the running of the whole machine to face serious difficulties, and both the torn down and those who do the tearing will suffer.” From the perspective of the whole and the system, the whole is greater than the part. The more that countries coordinate and cooperate as parts of a whole, the more the world as a whole can continue to improve, leading to the formation of a “good world” (好世界).
西方国家基于个人主义和本位主义价值观观察和处理世界事务,很容易形成你死我活的零和思维与冷战思维,以及本国至上的狭隘民族主义,乃至恃强凌弱的霸权主义和强权政治。问题在于,世界从来就是一个有机整体,各国只是这个有机整体的组成部分。习近平主席指出:“国际社会发展到今天已经成为一部复杂精巧、有机一体的机器,拆掉一个零部件就会使整个机器运转面临严重困难,被拆的人会受损,拆的人也会受损。”从整体和系统的角度看,整体大于部分。作为组成部分的各个国家越是能够协调合作,世界整体越能不断优化,并由此形成“好世界”。
II. The Global Security Initiative Embodies the Spirit of the Era
二、全球安全倡议体现时代精神
To relieve the current, constantly intensifying, global security dilemma we must first, on the level of values, abandon the Cold War mentality and the habit of using a zero-sum game approach. The world today faces two very different governance concepts and paths to choose from: one is the old security outlook that adheres to the stubborn Western zero-sum game and Cold War mentality, takes power politics and military force as its code of conduct, and accepts group confrontation and sacrificing the security of other countries in exchange for one’s own so-called absolute security; the other is a new security outlook based on the values of common interests and a globalist perspective, emphasizing fairness and reasonableness, joint contribution and sharing, political negotiation, and mutual respect. The facts show that the old security concept long practiced by Western countries has increasingly constricted the development path of human society, causing the whole world to become less and less secure. In this context, it has become increasingly urgent to advocate and practice a new security concept that is shared, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable.
纾解当前全球日趋加剧的安全困境,必须首先从价值观念上摒弃冷战思维及零和博弈的习惯性做法。当今世界面临两种迥然不同的治理理念和路径选择:一种是抱守西方零和博弈和冷战思维观念,以强权政治和穷兵黩武为行为准则,以集团对抗和牺牲他国安全换取自身所谓绝对安全的旧安全观;另一种是基于共同利益和天下主义为价值理念,强调公平合理、共建共享、政治谈判和互相尊重的新安全观。事实表明,西方国家长期践行的旧安全观使人类社会发展之路越走越窄,整个世界变得越来越不安全。在这种背景下,倡导和践行共同、综合、合作、可持续的新安全观变得日趋迫切。
The Global Security Initiative proposed by Chairman Xi Jinping is the concentrated expression of this type of new security concept. Looking at its specific content and internal logic, the “Six Persistences” (六个坚持) which the Global Security Initiative stresses are practical and feasible guiding solutions for the various crucial problems in the current world security dilemma. These propositions are interlinked and complement each other, drawing a blueprint for building a new and better world.
习近平主席提出的全球安全倡议,就是这种新安全观的集中体现。从具体内容和内在逻辑看,全球安全倡议强调的“六个坚持”是针对当今世界安全困境中的种种症结,提出的切实可行的指导性方案。这些主张环环相扣、彼此呼应,为构建更加美好的新世界擘画了蓝图。
In terms of ideological origins, the basic content of the Global Security Initiative is both the condensing and sublation of the basic norms of international law and the experience and lessons of international security governance, and a manifestation of the nature and coloring of eastern civilization and the core socialist values. From the perspective of philosophical thinking, Chinese civilization emphasizes dialectical thinking, understands the complex interplay of good and bad, and mutual transformation through contradiction. As a result, it seldom goes to extremes and opposes either-or thinking and the deeply metaphysical Cold War mindset. In inter-state exchanges, in contrast to Western values’ domineering practices of being quick to impose on others, Chinese civilization advocates “do not impose on others what you do not wish for yourself” and emphasizes inclusiveness. In terms of the notion of security, Chinese civilization has a strong awareness that “the world is one family” and advocates a shared, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable security concept, which is at a far higher level than the “winner takes all” values of Western civilization. As a socialist country, China emphasizes the spirit of internationalism and advocates equal respect and peaceful coexistence with other countries (especially developing countries). The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence advocated by China are a typical manifestation of major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, and the Global Security Initiative is an organic component of this theoretical system.
从思想渊源看,全球安全倡议的基本内容既是对国际法基本准则和国际安全治理经验教训的凝练和扬弃,也彰显了东方文明和社会主义核心价值观的底蕴和底色。从哲学思维看,中华文明强调辩证思维,理解祸福相依、矛盾相互转化,因而甚少走向极端,反对非此即彼、形而上学色彩浓厚的冷战思维;在国家间交往中,不同于西方价值观中动辄强加于人的霸道做法,中华文明主张“己所不欲,勿施于人”,强调兼容并蓄;在安全理念上,中华文明有着强烈的“天下一家”意识,倡导共同、综合、合作、可持续的安全观,这远远高于西方文明“赢者通吃”的价值观站位。中国作为社会主义国家,更是强调国际主义精神,主张与其他国家(尤其是发展中国家)平等尊重、和平共处。中国倡导的和平共处五项原则就是中国特色大国外交的典型体现,全球安全倡议则是这一理论体系的有机组成部分。
From a vertical perspective, the Global Security Initiative is a continuation of the overall national security outlook (总体国家安全观) and the Asian security outlook. With an inherent logical connection, the three construct a new security outlook with a complete system from the domestic, regional, and global levels respectively. From a horizontal perspective, the Global Security Initiative complements the Global Development Initiative proposed by Chairman Xi Jinping at the General Debate of the UN General Assembly in September 2021. It is an important pillar for building a “community with a shared future for humankind,” thereby providing a foundation of theory and thought for creating a new form of human civilization different from the Western system. The major innovative initiatives put forward by Chairman Xi Jinping on global security and development issues are precisely the concentrated embodiments of China’s contribution to human society in the field of values.
从纵向看,全球安全倡议与总体国家安全观以及亚洲安全观一脉相承,具有内在的逻辑联系,三者分别从国内、地区和全球层面构建起体系完整的新安全观。从横向看,全球安全倡议与习近平主席在2021年9月联合国大会一般性辩论上提出的全球发展倡议相辅相成,是构建“人类命运共同体”的重要支柱,由此为创造不同于西方体系的人类文明新形态提供了理论和思想基础。习近平主席在全球安全和发展议题中提出的重大创新性倡议,恰是中国在价值观领域为人类社会作出贡献的集中体现。
In the Practice of the Global Security Initiative Hegemony Must be Opposed
践行全球安全倡议必须反对霸权主义
In the process of human social development, peace and security are the most important and most precious global public goods, and are also the most luxurious and scarce global public goods. According to statistics, in the recorded history of humankind, there have been only 268 years without war. Private ownership is the general root cause of imperialist wars. Capital is “value that can bring surplus value,” and it is the inherent nature of capitalism to realize capital appreciation. Marx once pointed out: “Capital is the economic power that dominates everything in bourgeois society. It must form both the point of departure and the conclusion.” “If turbulence and strife will bring a profit, it will freely encourage both.” As long as the capitalist system based on private ownership exists, imperialist wars with capital accumulation as their ultimate goal are inevitable. Looking at world history and the current reality, the capital accumulation of Western countries is often accomplished through hegemonic means, and hegemonism and power politics are still the direct causes that exacerbate the current global security dilemma. History is always spiraling upwards and moving forward in waves, and relieving the global security dilemma will be a long and tortuous process.
在人类社会发展过程中,和平与安全是全球最重要、最宝贵的公共产品,也是最奢侈、最稀缺的全球公共产品。据统计,在人类有记载的历史中,只有268年没有发生战争。私有制是帝国主义发动战争的总根源。资本就是“能够带来剩余价值的价值”,实现资本增值是资本主义固有天性。马克思曾指出:“资本是资产阶级社会支配一切的经济权力。它必须成为起点,又成为终点”,“如果动乱和纷争能带来利润,它就会鼓励动乱和纷争”。只要存在以私有制为经济基础的资本主义制度,以资本积累为最终目标的帝国主义战争就不可避免。从世界历史和当下现实看,西方国家的资本积累往往通过霸权主义方式完成,霸权主义和强权政治仍是当前全球安全困境加剧的直接原因。历史总是螺旋式上升、波浪式前进,纾解全球安全困境将是一个漫长而曲折的过程。
World peace and stability cannot be achieved by relying only on goodwill and desire. Ultimately, in order to maintain world peace and implement the Global Security Initiative, we must oppose hegemonism. Deng Xiaoping once pointed out: “The world now has two most fundamental issues. The first is to oppose hegemonism and maintain world peace. The root cause of the unrest in today’s world is the struggle for hegemony; what it harms are the interests of third-world countries. The second is the North-South issue. This is an extremely important aspect for international issues in the future.” The proposition of opposing hegemonism and maintaining world peace is still of epochal significance.
世界和平与稳定仅仅靠善意和愿望是无法实现的,要想维护世界和平、落实全球安全倡议,归根到底要反对霸权主义。邓小平曾指出:“世界现在存在两个最根本的问题。第一是反对霸权主义,维护世界和平。当今世界不安宁的根源来源于霸权主义的争夺,它损害的是第三世界国家的利益。第二是南北问题。这是今后国际问题中一个十分重要的方面。”反对霸权主义、维护世界和平这一命题至今仍具有时代意义。
In the current international political reality, the war-loving United States has increasingly become the greatest threat to world peace. Since U.S. independence in 1776, there have been less than 20 years when the United States was not involved in a war. According to incomplete statistics, from the end of World War II in 1945 to 2001, among the 248 armed conflicts in 153 regions of the world, 201 were initiated by the United States, about 81% of the total. The United States has more than 800 overseas military bases around the world and frequently launches foreign wars. In August 2017, a poll conducted in 20 countries by the Pew Research Center, an American polling agency, showed that 35% of respondents believed that the “power and influence” of the United States was a “major threat” to world peace. In this context, curbing the unilateralism and hegemonistic behavior of the United States has become a major issue of the times.
在当前的国际政治现实中,好战的美国日渐成为世界和平的最大威胁。自1776年美国独立以来,美国没有参与战争的时间不足20年。据不完全统计,自1945年二战结束至2001年,世界上153个地区发生的248次武装冲突中,由美发起的为201场,约占81%。美国在全球拥有800多个海外军事基地,频频发动海外战争。2017年8月,美国民调机构皮尤研究中心在20个国家举行的民调显示,35%的受访者认为美国的“权力和影响”是世界和平的“主要威胁”。在此背景下,遏制美国的单边主义和霸权主义行径,已成为一项重大的时代课题。
From the perspective of war and peace, the world generally has two forces: one is the force of historical progress that wishes for peace and development, and the other is the reactionary force that yearns to wage war and profit from it. If we are to implement the Global Security Initiative and maintain world peace and stability, we must unite all peace-loving countries and peoples in the world to form a united front against hegemony. Only when peace-loving countries and peoples in the world unite so that their strength exceeds that of war-loving forces can world peace and stability be truly guaranteed.
从战争与和平角度看,世界大体存在两种力量:一种是希望和平与发展的历史进步力量,另一种是热衷于发动战争并从中渔翁得利的反动力量。要想落实全球安全倡议,维护世界和平与稳定,必须联合世界上所有爱好和平的国家和人民,形成反霸统一战线。只有全世界热爱和平的国家和民众联合起来且力量超过热衷战争的力量,世界的和平与稳定才可能真正得到保障。