Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence more relevant than ever

Officials and scholars said the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence has transcended time and space, overcome estrangement and become more relevant in today's world as it has contributed to handling well state-to-state relations and promoting global peace and tranquility.

They made the remarks on Friday in Beijing at a sub-forum commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, namely mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence.

Kgalema Petrus Motlanthe, former president of South Africa, said the five principles was China's solution to myriad challenges facing the world such as hegemony and protectionism.

"China has transformed into a powerhouse with significant industrial and technological abilities. Despite these progresses, China remains steadfast in its cooperative approach rejecting conditionalities," he said.

"China does not aspire to be a superpower and not seek dominance, instead it advocates respect, cooperation and common security and is against hegemonic practices," he added.

Martin Cyril Albrow, fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in the United Kingdom, called for extensive consultations and rejected dictation by certain countries in global governance.

The five principles emphasized cooperation, which was a "distinctive and profound feature of Chinese culture going back to millennia", he said, adding that only through cooperation can human beings achieve sustainable development.

Noting global governance is "a matter for collective efforts", he said countries should "rise for the task in relations with each other, not in rules and purposes by only a small group of nations".

Lailufar Yasmin, professor and chairperson of Department of International Relations of University of Dhaka in Bangladesh, said the principle of equality and mutual benefit was an inclusive philosophy which encourages countries to share their development opportunities and pursue common development.

Taking China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative as an example, she said the initiative was not just a "simple master plan" but reflected the idea of "sustainable development".

She appreciated China for sharing its wealth and resources with its neighbors as she said one country's sustainable development was impossible if its neighbors were in poverty.

Avijit Banerjee, head of Department of Chinese Language and Culture at Visva-Bharati University in India, said mutual non-aggression and peaceful coexistence carry special significances particularly as there are some disputes left from history among Asian countries.

He maintained that disputes, no matter how complex, should be resolved peacefully instead of using forces, which he believed was the nature of the five principles.