Security impacts the welfare of individuals across all nations, the noble pursuit of global peace and progress, and the future of humanity. Things are changing on our planet, in our time, and throughout history in ways never seen before, and the global community faces several unusual dangers and problems. Regional security hotspots remain intact, COVID-19 flares up, and local conflicts and turmoil often occur in the region. The pandemic continues, and unilateralism and protectionism have increased since the end of the Cold War. Conventional and unconventional threats to global peace and national security persist amid these challenges to the economy. Nations must endure, safeguard their sovereignty, strive for improved global governance and prioritize their economies.
In view of this, the Chinese leadership under Xi Jinping proposed the Global Security Initiative in his keynote address to the Boao Forum in 2022, when the world was facing the pandemic. President Xi emphasized global governance concerns in his speech, particularly in areas such as digital governance and climate change, as the precarious economic recovery exacerbates the gap between the rich and the poor. He also quoted a Chinese proverb that a man must never change his resolve or give up his pursuit, even in the face of danger and peril. In other words, he has expressed his confidence in the mitigation of both traditional and non-traditional threats facing the international community.
In early 2023, the Chinese Ministry for Foreign Affairs published a details document with the name of ‘Global Security Initiative’ based on President Xi’s address to the Boao Forum, which includes six principles and a set of 24 priorities for international cooperation and the papers also emphasis the greater role for the International Organizations like United Nations Organization and its specialized agencies, SCO, BRICS and other multilateral institution. Whether the traditional risks to the security of the state have been over, or now the state has to move forward. The objective behind the GSI is to address the core causes of these old conflicts, which include bad governance, a focus on the security of some regions, unequal standing for all the states within the international system, and uneven economic development.
As we dismantle the GSI, the main focus is on the vision of common and comprehensive security for all nations that can be sustainable and can be attained only with the collaboration of all states. The basic principle of that notion is to promote a concept of common security, respecting and defending the security of all the states within the system in traditional and non-traditional domains, without any distinction between small or great states. Basically, following the notion of sovereign equality and it can only be achieved by promoting the political dialogue and negotiations among the stakeholders to achieve the long-lasting peace at the international level.
The second premise of the GSI focuses on avoiding war and sanctions as a way to resolve international conflicts.Instead, to resolve disputes and address the underlying causes of conflicts to lower tensions, the system’s important players must support nonviolent methods such as mediation, discussions, and strategic communications. The international community should also encourage the parties to the conflict to build trust to seek a solution to all unresolved issues in a peaceful way. Unilateral sanctions and arms efforts to resolve the conflict only caused complications, not a solution.
The concept of security is likewise evolving as classic and non-traditional dangers become interwoven. As a result, all nations around the world have adopted the principle of extensive discussion on conflicting issues, shared the benefits of cooperation and development through better governance, and developed common themes for the resolution of issues such as climate, cyber security, terrorism, and bio security to achieve long-term progress on a global scale.
The top priorities of the security initiative show that China is ready to cooperate with all nations on all levels, including bilateral, multilateral, regional, and international, to achieve the goal of all-inclusive security that can be beneficial for all stakeholders. The goal of this initiative is to create a stable international environment that benefits both progress and the happiness of the people who live on this planet.
China also supported UNO peace programs aimed at ensuring global security, resolving conflicts, and addressing the root causes of war, which are linked to uneven economic development and resource distribution. GSI also aims to investigate new areas and types of collaboration. In this sense, China is willing to partner with every nation, regardless of political system, philosophy, or rate of development. The main goal for China is to make the globe a safer place and to avoid armed conflicts that threaten global peace.
Participant of ICSF – UOS Fellowship Program 2025-26 at University of Sargodha.
