‘Remonstrating,’ or the Art of Forging Relations
During the highly mediatized state visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to China in April 2023, the ‘People’s Daily’ (Renmin ribao), the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), published the following statement on the frontpage of its 7 April issue: “Xi Jinping pointed out that the world today is undergoing profound historical changes. As permanent members of the UN Security Council and major powers with a tradition of independence, China and France, as staunch promoters of the world’s multi-polarization and the democratization of international relations, have the ability and responsibility to transcend differences, to adhere to the general direction of the Chinese-French comprehensive strategic partnership that is stable, reciprocal, pioneering and upward, to practice true multilateralism, and to maintain world peace, stability and prosperity.”
The rest of this article can be found on the ReConnect China website of Ghent University.
(Photo credit: Jasper Roctus)