Amid rising geopolitical tensions, growing economic uncertainties and escalating climate and security risks, the China-proposed Global Governance Initiative is increasingly drawing international attention with its call to strengthen cooperation, uphold multilateralism and offer practical solutions to shared global challenges.

The GGI, which was put forward by President Xi Jinping in September at the "Shanghai Cooperation Organization Plus" Meeting, emphasizes adhering to sovereign equality, abiding by the international rule of law, practicing multilateralism, advocating a people-centered approach and focusing on taking concrete actions.

Since its launch, the initiative has received broad support from more than 140 countries and international organizations.

Analysts and policymakers note that the GGI signals China's more proactive role in global governance, particularly as international institutions face strains and global trust weakens. By promoting inclusiveness, dialogue and shared responsibility, the initiative offers a road map for countries to jointly navigate crises, strengthen stability and amplify the voice of the Global South.

In November, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the four global initiatives proposed by President Xi — the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative and the Global Governance Initiative — constitute important public goods that China offers to the international community.

While each initiative has a distinct focus, they are not mutually exclusive, Wang said, adding that together they form key pillars supporting the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity, spanning development, security, civilization and governance.

Greater solidarity stressed

Danilo Turk, former president of Slovenia, said these global initiatives — particularly the GGI — are invaluable in helping define a path for the world to maintain stability and prosperity.

Turk, who is also president of the World Leadership Alliance, noted that challenges such as climate change require universally accepted frameworks and institutions.

Despite obstacles, including what he described as limited enthusiasm for multilateralism shown by the current United States administration, Turk said there is "no solution without global cooperation, and no single country can lead the world", underscoring the significance of China's articulation of a long-term vision.

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, president of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly and former foreign minister of Ecuador, said that while countries may differ on solutions, they share common objectives, including peace, poverty reduction, food security, education, health and climate resilience.

Espinosa said the four China-proposed initiatives — especially the GGI — recognize the urgency of collective responsibility. She described the GGI as "a cross-cutting initiative", noting that today's challenges require respect for international law, predictability and agreed rules.

In a world marked by changes and turbulence, she said the initiatives serve as "a call for countries to join forces", particularly the Global South nations, to build more horizontal partnerships and deepen cooperation.

"The threats facing today's world require greater solidarity and more cooperation, not less," Espinosa added.

Wolfgang Kubin, a German Sinologist known for his extensive research on Chinese culture, said the teachings of Confucius found in The Great Learning remain highly relevant to contemporary debates on global governance.

"If the world is to change for the better, we must first unite and begin by changing ourselves, rather than demanding that others change the world for us," Kubin said.

Yet many governments and voices that describe themselves as "progressive" have become accustomed to criticizing China without self-reflection, he said, calling it a habit that undermines the trust essential for cooperation.

The urgency of rebuilding trust is underscored by today's global realities. Speaking at the 23rd Lanting Forum on Oct 27 in Beijing, Foreign Minister Wang said that more than 50 conflicts are currently ongoing worldwide, and over 100 million people have been displaced.

The GGI sends "a strong message that countries must come together to meet challenges and build consensus, forging a force of solidarity and cooperation to overcome division and confrontation", Wang said.

Kubin echoed this view from a cultural and philosophical perspective. "What we need is trust — humanity needs trust. Governments need more trust," he said, adding that without trust, "life simply cannot function".

Multilateralism reaffirmed

The GGI is widely seen as a strong reaffirmation of multilateralism, providing a platform for collective action.

On Dec 9, the Group of Friends of Global Governance was officially launched, with 43 founding member states issuing a joint statement calling for stronger support for the UN, coordinated responses to global challenges, and concrete actions to meet the expectations of people worldwide.

At the inaugural meeting, Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, said the group is open to all UN member states and welcomes the participation of more like-minded countries. He also encouraged members to strengthen engagement and cooperation with other countries, the UN Secretariat and relevant international organizations, with the aim of building a more just and equitable global governance system and contributing more to world peace and development.

Former Belgian prime minister Yves Leterme described the GGI as "an excellent contribution" to strengthening the multilateral system, which he said must be rebalanced to reflect the growing weight of non-Western countries.

Leterme emphasized the need to apply these principles to real-world crises. He urged dialogue centered on common interests, citing the GGI as a framework grounded in principles widely shared under the UN Charter.

Zlatko Lagumdzija, former prime minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said the four global initiatives together offer a road map toward achieving a shared future that treats diversity as "an asset, not a liability".

At the core of the GGI is the call to defend national sovereignty, uphold multilateralism and reinforce the international rule of law at a time when some actors appear to favor "the rules of the jungle", he said.

Lagumdzija warned that abandoning these principles would push countries toward isolation, instability and risks, awakening "the dark ages" of medieval Europe.

He stressed the need to rejuvenate multilateralism with the UN at its center. Without the UN, he warned, "the world will be one big jungle". As global capabilities continue to grow exponentially, it is essential to channel that power toward shared benefits and a common future, he added.

Leading by example

China has consistently advocated collective safeguarding of the UN's authority and its role as a cornerstone of global governance, maintaining that the international system centered on the world body should be strengthened, not weakened.

As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing country, China has consistently positioned itself as a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development, a defender of international order and a provider of global public goods.

The country is the largest contributor of peacekeeping personnel among the Security Council's permanent members, and is also the second-largest contributor to both the UN regular budget and UN peacekeeping assessments.

Volkan Bozkir, president of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly and former chief foreign policy adviser to the president of Turkiye, said that China has long played a central role within the UN system and other post-World War II multilateral institutions. He described China as often acting like a "referee in difficult situations", exercising prudence and caution when making major decisions.

At a time when governance has become a defining global issue, Bozkir noted that China is "one of the countries we can look to" for examples of effective governance, adding that China plays a significant role in both global governance and the global economy.

During the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, China announced that it would no longer seek new special and differential treatment in ongoing or future negotiations at the World Trade Organization.

Lan Qingxin, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said that China's confidence in voluntarily assuming greater international responsibilities stems from its remarkable economic achievements since the launch of reform and opening-up.

Lan noted that the policy statement demonstrates China's firm commitment to upholding the multilateral trading system and advancing the GGI. The move will inject fresh momentum into global trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, while delivering positive impetus for reforming the global economic governance architecture, he added.

Ding Yifan, a senior fellow at the Institute of Global Governance and Development at Renmin University of China, said the four global initiatives were introduced at different times but are organically connected, reflecting the complexity of today's global landscape.

China's renewed emphasis on global governance at the SCO Summit in September reflects the reality that the postwar governance structure — centered around the UN — can no longer fully accommodate the profound geopolitical and economic shifts unfolding worldwide, Ding said.

He noted that China's approach involves both reforming existing mechanisms and developing complementary new frameworks. These efforts include the establishment of the SCO, the creation of the New Development Bank by BRICS countries, and China's proposal for the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

Such institutions have injected new momentum into the Global South and emerging economies, becoming an integral part of the global governance architecture China advocates, Ding added.

Former Bhutanese prime minister Jigmi Thinley underscored China's growing importance on the global stage, particularly in amplifying the voice of the Global South in global governance. He described China's development experience as "exemplary for developing countries", noting that its transformation from a poor nation to its current level of development has been "amazing".

Thinley highlighted China's achievement in lifting around 800 million people out of abject poverty as an example of "good leadership and good governance". He said that China's approach shows how domestic policy successes can translate into constructive contributions to global governance.

"Good governance is a system that serves the interests of the people,"Thinley said, adding that China's internal accountability mechanisms provide valuable lessons for other developing countries participating in initiatives such as the GGI.

Practical solutions

Hedva Ser, a UNESCO goodwill ambassador for cultural diplomacy and UNESCO artist for peace, said that China today plays an "extremely important role" on the global stage, particularly through its emphasis on peace, development and improvement of people's well-being.

"China is thinking about its people and about development, not about war. And that is very important," Ser said.

She also praised China's contributions to intercultural dialogue and its strong support for UNESCO projects. "The United States stepped out of UNESCO, but we are very fortunate that China remains actively engaged and is providing increasing support."

According to a concept paper on the GGI released by the Foreign Ministry, priority will be given to areas where governance demand is urgent, but supply remains insufficient. These include reform of the international financial architecture, artificial intelligence, cyberspace, climate change, trade and outer space.

China has said it aims to strengthen communication and cooperation in these areas to build consensus, identify deliverables and achieve early results.

As the Paris Agreement marked its 10th anniversary and global climate governance entered a critical stage, China announced in September a new round of Nationally Determined Contributions.

In October, the International Organization for Mediation was officially launched in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is the world's first intergovernmental legal organization dedicated to resolving international disputes through mediation, representing a new global public good provided by China and its founding partners.

In response to both the opportunities and risks posed by the rapid development of artificial intelligence, China proposed the Global AI Governance Initiative in 2023 and, in July this year, called for the establishment of a World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization. The aim, it said, is to ensure that AI is developed for the common good and it benefits all of humanity.

Former Norwegian prime minister Kjell Magne Bondevik said that China's size and global presence mean that its initiatives naturally carry wide-ranging impact. "We do not need to agree on everything, but we should engage in dialogue, so we can better understand one another," he said.

Former Czech deputy foreign minister Petr Drulak described the GGI as "an important contribution to the ongoing discussion about the future of the world order".

Drulak welcomed China's emphasis on multilateralism, noting that the emergence of "more centers of world politics" is already underway. The challenge is ensuring that these centers are "able to sit at one table" and "discuss common rules" for the global economy and broader governance issues, he said.

China does not merely accept the fact that it will be one of the centers of world politics, but also seeks to "contribute to finding diplomatic solutions", Drulak said.

He said he found it particularly noteworthy that the initiative calls for "reality-based solutions", rather than ideological approaches, which he noted have at times shaped Western debates.

In recent years, many people in the West have been so enchanted with ideologies that they forgot about reality, Drulak said, emphasizing that the GGI serves as "a useful reminder that responsible leaders actually respect reality and strive for solutions that are based on reality".

The four initiatives proposed by China demonstrate that its global ambitions are accompanied by a sense of responsibility toward the world, reflecting efforts to align national interests with those of the broader international community, he added.

Former Spanish deputy prime minister Pablo Iglesias Turrion said the GGI is oriented toward safeguarding peace and promoting development, offering the international community "a new option" at a time when traditional models face growing criticism.

He noted that China "never requires its partners to adopt any particular political system or economic model", calling this trait a defining difference between China and other major powers.

Grzegorz W. Kolodko, former deputy prime minister and finance minister of Poland, said the GGI has been received particularly well in developing countries, where its emphasis on rules that must be respected "by all parties involved" closely aligns with the priorities of many Global South nations.

Kolodko attributed this positive response in part to what he described as a crisis of the so-called rules-based order. Although the system is supposed to be rules-based, "the rules are not observed, and often not honored", particularly under the current US administration, he said.

With the global economy highly interconnected yet lacking a unified mechanism to coordinate policies on matters related to the economy, technology and environment, "we do need something like global governance", Kolodko said, adding that the GGI should be considered very seriously and followed to the greatest possible extent.

zhaojia@chinadaily.com.cn