The story of China's diplomacy is told

Telling China's story well is the proper meaning of diplomatic work, and telling diplomatic stories well is an important part of telling China's story well. When General Secretary Xi Jinping met with the participants of the 2023 Annual Work Conference of Foreign Envoys, he pointed out that it is necessary to tell China's story well in an international language and way. Telling the Chinese story of major-country diplomacy well and showing the grand picture of major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics from striving to forging ahead is an important window for striving for the understanding, recognition and support of the international community.

Why tell the story of China's diplomacy well

Demonstrate the outstanding achievements of the Party's management of diplomacy. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy and in the great journey of advancing the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, the mainland has made historic achievements and undergone historic changes in its foreign work. China has established or restored diplomatic relations with 183 countries as a supporter and promoter of multilateralism, and has played a more pivotal role in multilateral platforms such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Under the guidance of the diplomacy of the head of state, China's diplomatic actions have continuously contributed Chinese wisdom and solutions to the world and promoted world peace and stability. Some of the stories of China's great power diplomacy can be told, and they can be told well.

Respond to the ever-changing situation of the big picture. The world is undergoing major changes unseen in a century, the international landscape and system are undergoing profound adjustments, and China is increasingly moving towards the center of the international stage. Changes in China's relations with the world require China not only to assume the role of a responsible major country, but also to tell the diplomatic story of a responsible major country. The international community wants to better understand and understand China, and China also hopes to enhance the understanding and support of other countries and regions for China's actions. At the same time, China is also facing the challenge of stigma and discourse traps, which require China to be more proactive in its voice and tell a more comprehensive and objective story of great power diplomacy.

Enhance bilateral and multilateral friendly cooperation. China has always stood firmly with developing countries and told the story of China's diplomacy, especially its friendly exchanges with developing countries, which is conducive to building an international united front, opposing hegemonism, strengthening cooperation in various fields, and jointly promoting the development of the international community towards multipolarization. China also regards the people as the value background of China's diplomacy, seeking both the welfare of the Chinese people and the happiness of the people of the world, and taking the building of a community with a shared future for mankind as a lofty goal. Telling the story of China's diplomacy, especially the story of all mankind breathing together and sharing a common destiny, can make the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind more recognized by countries and peoples. China's vision of a community with a shared future for mankind has been included in the relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly's Disarmament and International Security Committee for seven consecutive years, enhancing China's friendship and cooperation with other countries in multilateral platforms.

What are the stories of China's diplomacy to tell?

Review the diplomatic tradition of peace and friendship with other countries. During his visit to the United States in November 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "In the more than 70 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, China has not taken the initiative to provoke any wars or conflicts, nor has it encroached on an inch of land of other countries. "The story of China's great power diplomacy should tell the story of China's long-term practice of pursuing peace and friendship, that is, China has always taken peaceful development as its purpose, clearly declared that it will not seek hegemony, expansion, or sphere of influence, and will adhere to the path of peaceful development as a major country with Chinese characteristics. The story of China's great power diplomacy should also tell China's cultural tradition of pursuing peace and friendship, that Chinese civilization does not have the gene of foreign aggression and expansion, and that Chinese culture emphasizes "harmony without difference". This year marks the 70th anniversary of the promulgation of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and China is committed to developing friendly cooperation with other countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.

Clarify the diplomatic realities of being a responsible major country. China has actively played its role as a responsible major country in the international community. China is currently the largest contributor of peacekeepers among the permanent members of the UN Security Council and the second largest contributor to UN peacekeeping; China has provided medical assistance to foreign countries, sending a total of 30,000 medical personnel to 76 countries and regions around the world by 2023, treating 290 million patients; China has also helped other countries develop by arranging more than 2,000 assistance projects in more than 120 co-construction countries, establishing more than 80 economic and trade cooperation zones, training more than 100,000 talents in various fields, and lifting nearly 40 million people out of poverty; China has promoted the peaceful settlement of international disputes and promoted the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iranand easing the situation in northern Myanmar through diplomatic mediation, which has become an important force in dispute settlement.

Describe the diplomatic vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind. In 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping first put forward the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind in his speech at the Moscow Institute of International Relations, the core of which is to build an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world with lasting peace, universal security and common prosperity, pointing out the direction for the common development of mankind. Building a community with a shared future for mankind is guided by the implementation of the three major global initiatives, adding development momentum to the Global Development Initiative, safeguarding world peace with the Global Security Initiative, and promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations through the Global Civilization Initiative, providing solid support for the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. The Belt and Road Initiative is an important practical platform for building a community with a shared future for mankind, and will continue to drive the common development of countries and regions along the Belt and Road. Over the past 10 years, China has signed more than 230 Belt and Road cooperation documents with more than 150 countries and more than 30 international organizations.

How to tell the story of China's diplomacy well

Construct a discourse system that tells the story of great power diplomacy. Focusing on me, we will create a credible and inspiring narrative of China's diplomacy. The history of China's diplomatic work is closely related to the history of the Communist Party of China (CPC) over the past 100 years, the history of reform and opening up for more than 40 years, and the extraordinary history since the new era. The historical experience of New China's diplomacy is the key material for telling the story of China's diplomacy well, which can expand the breadth and depth of the narrative, and can also arouse wider resonance among countries and their peoples in the process of external communication. By telling the story of China's opposition to foreign interference, it will arouse the emotional resonance of developing countries towards China, and by telling the story of China's unremitting pursuit of modernization and national rejuvenation, it will win wide recognition from developing countries.

Improve the narrative ability to tell a good diplomatic story. The first is to pay attention to the first cause effect, establish a corpus and content database of diplomatic stories, do a good job of narrative design in advance, actively and immediately speak out on international issues, expound China's policy propositions, and grasp the narrative initiative. The second is to focus on the platform effect and create a new type of world-class mainstream media with strong leadership, communication and influence; strengthen cooperation with local media and platforms in the target countries, rely on local influential platforms to turn local media into tellers of the story of friendly exchanges between the two countries; expand China's influence in multilateral platforms, participate in agenda setting, and better tell the story of China's diplomacy. The third is to pay attention to the affinity effect, according to the national conditions of different countries, to create targeted story content, and pay attention to regionalization and focus expression.

Expand the narrative partners that tell good diplomatic stories. Diversifying the subjects of telling diplomatic stories well should not only tell their own stories, but also invite other countries to tell them together. China should work with other countries to dig deep into the history of friendly exchanges and jointly tell the story of friendship between countries. As of 2023, there are 50 pairs of sister provinces and states and 234 pairs of sister cities between China and the United States, all of which provide rich material for the two countries to tell the story of friendly exchanges. China should work with other countries to tell the story of cooperation at the government level, the story of friendly meetings between leaders, the story of friendly exchanges between people, the story of win-win cooperation between enterprises and the story of cultural exchanges.