On the 55th anniversary of the restoration of the lawful seat of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the United Nations (UN), China is highlighting its push for global civilizational dialogue, with the UN having adopted a China-proposed resolution designating June 10 as the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations.
On October 25, 1971, the 26th Session of the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758, restoring all the lawful rights of the PRC in the UN.
Today the UN has 193 member states, each with its own language, culture and history. Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the secretary-general, who has served the UN for more than 25 years, said understanding across those differences begins with giving every voice room to be heard.
"I've been in the UN now for almost for more than 25 years and I've learned so much. And what has helped me learn about different people and different cultures is listening, right? And it's taken me a long time to learn that listening is the most important thing. And what I've learned is to listen and to ensure that people who may not speak are given the space to speak," said Dujarric.
To deepen understanding among countries with different histories and cultures, China proposed the Global Civilization Initiative in 2023. A year later, it put forward a proposal at the UN to establish an international day for dialogue among civilizations.
In June 2024, the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly adopted by consensus the China-proposed resolution, designating June 10 as the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations.
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, recalled the scene inside the General Assembly hall when the resolution passed.
"What I remember vividly is the moment in the General Assembly hall when the president struck the gavel and announced the resolution had been adopted by consensus, and all member states burst into warm applause. This is a successful practice of China's implementation of the Global Civilization Initiative, and it fully demonstrates that Chinese concepts are increasingly expanding into international consensus, showing strong leadership and vitality," he said.
The resolution has since moved from paper to practice, with the first commemorative event for the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations held at UN Headquarters in 2025.
On June 10 this year, China joined several permanent missions and partners, including the UN Alliance of Civilizations and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), in hosting another high-level event that drew nearly 300 representatives.
"China is working with all parties to actively implement the spirit of the relevant UN General Assembly resolution and strive to build platforms for equal dialogue among different civilizations. A series of colorful commemorative events at UN Headquarters and around the world are like trickling streams converging into a river of understanding and mutual trust," Fu said.
China committed to promoting dialogue among civilizations in UN
Amidst overlapping global challenges, international experts at the 2026 Global Governance Forum in north China's Hebei Province emphasized that rebuilding confidence and cooperation in global governance requires enhanced dialogue, the establishment of common rules in emerging fields, and a fairer, more inclusive international system that amplifies the voice of the Global South.
Held from October 23 to 25 in Xiong'an, China's "city of the future" built on the North China Plain, the forum brought together nearly 400 representatives from over 90 countries. Spanning five major sectors and 22 thematic seminars, the event provided a platform for diverse stakeholders in politics, economy, technology, culture, and think tanks to jointly address governance challenges and promote inclusive, multi-stakeholder global governance reform.
"In this conference, I met some American representatives, a remarkable businessman. I asked him, 'what are you doing here?' And he said, 'I wanted to discuss Global Governance Initiative.' I said, 'Listen, I don't believe because whatever China proposes, the U.S. will object. And he said no. And he mentioned specific subject -- AI. He said, 'I want to make my humble contribution into establishing (of) global governance in AI.' So among Americans, this idea is also receiving some understanding. More dialogue is required and I would underline the weight of this forum," said Djoomart Otorbaev, former prime minister of Kyrgyzstan.
In today's world, where deficits in peace, development, security, and governance are intertwined, rebuilding confidence and cooperation is the most scarce international public good. In response, China has proactively set the agenda to address pressing concerns, such as advancing the reform of the UN-centered governance system, cooperating on new frontiers like cyberspace, outer space, and AI, and bridging civilizational divides amidst geopolitical rivalry.
"And there were some specific initiatives which we also have discussed, which is to set the global governance for the outer space, for the deep seas, for some areas of the planet like the Antarctica, where there is various needs for more common rules. One area the world is looking for is artificial intelligence and we need to regulate globally and efficient intelligence to avoid the worst. So if we work together, we can get the benefits and make sure that we make it much more difficult to do the harm," said Erik Solheim, chairman of the EU-Asia Centre and former UN under-secretary-general and former executive director of the UN Environment Programme.
"The world has become a global village, but this global village is now fighting. There's a problem going on in the Middle East, there's a problem going on in Africa, but China is trying to promote a conclusive thing so that the world can be peaceful. Because of this Global Governance Initiative, China has been able to tell the world (that) how to work together," said Khalid Taimur Akram, executive director of the Pakistan Research Center for a Community with a Shared Future.
Since its proposal over a year ago, the Global Governance Initiative has garnered support and responses from over 160 countries and international organizations.
During the forum, China announced pragmatic measures to further implement the initiative, reaffirming its firm support for multilateralism and the core status of the United Nations, while emphasizing the need to enhance the representation and voice of the Global South in international affairs to translate the initiative from a Chinese proposal into broader international practice.
"It's that combination of defense of the games that arise from the existence of the international system, but improving it, updating it, performing it, making it fairer, particularly to the great mass of developing countries, which is why the Chinese proposals meet a lot of support, particularly from the Global South, but also from fair minded people in other countries," said Keith Bennett, vice chairman of UK 48 Group Club.
Participants of Global Governance Forum hail China's contribution to fairer international order
