Unfortunately, it might turn out to be nothing but an attempt to divide the world into opposing political camps and advance the US’ own strategic agenda with democracy as an excuse. If so, the meeting couldn’t be further away from the spirit of democracy.

China firmly opposes the move by the US, one that is dominated by the Cold War mentality and which seeks to incite ideological confrontation and risks creating new dividing lines in the international community.

With this summit, the US seeks to empower itself to determine who is democratic and who is not based on its own liking and measure the merits of other countries’ democracy with its own yardstick. This is, in fact, privatization and labeling of democracy and will make the “Summit for Democracy” itself undemocratic.

The world today is facing pressing global challenges such as an ongoing pandemic and climate change, and some countries, including the US, are troubled by a worsening democracy and many domestic problems. Under such circumstances, countries have every reason to prioritize the needs of the people, advocate unity and cooperation, and strive for development and progress.

Perhaps the last thing a responsible major country should do is to turn a blind eye to its own problems and scapegoat others politically. Ironically, it is the people who have to pay the price at the end of the day.

While upholding democracy at home, countries should also support greater democracy in international relations, uphold the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law. Efforts are also urgently needed to practice true multilateralism and make global governance more inclusive. These are the shared aspirations of the international community and meet the trend of our times. Unfortunately, the upcoming summit in the US will in no way advance these goals, except for making itself a disruptive factor.

China believes that democracy means, in essence, that people are the masters of the country. Democracy is practiced to meet people’s needs, bringing the people a decent and happy life and progress for the country and beyond.

Having seen a number of successful and failed cases of democracy worldwide, countries across the world must have come to realize one thing, that is, true democracy will only dawn when it is deeply rooted in a country and fits well with its own national conditions and stage of development.

Efforts to mechanically copy the political systems and democratic models of others have never worked and never will. Neither do attempts to impose one’s own political will on others.

When it comes to China’s case, the Chinese people have followed the political development path with Chinese characteristics and created the model of whole-process people’s democracy. The people enjoy the right to democratic elections, decision-making, management and supervision in accordance with the law.

And the fundamental principle of putting people at the center is well applied to every policy and measure that will affect people’s daily lives. This specific model of democracy works well in China, as it has been proven to be capable of solving China’s problems and thus greatly supported by the Chinese people.

When it comes to the international arena, China proposes to forge a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice and win-win cooperation, building a global community with a shared future for mankind and striving for greater democracy in international relations.

Unfortunately, regarding the US, it has continued to claim that it is a “beacon of democracy” and “model of democracy” over the years, despite the structural flaws and problematic practices of its democratic system. It is the American people who are paying the heavy price for its rampant racial discrimination, enlarging social divide and widening wealth gap at home.

However, none of these have discouraged the US from interfering in other countries’ internal affairs, waging war under the guise of “democracy”, lecturing others on democracy in a condescending manner and creating regional turbulence and humanitarian disasters.

The US hosting of the “Summit for Democracy” follows the same logic behind the formation of some new regional groupings, including the Quad and AUKUS. With these moves, one thing is for sure: the US is still deeply obsessed with the Cold War mentality.

Amid attempts to provoke confrontation or division in the region and beyond, China will work with other countries in the world to champion mutual respect, promote win-win cooperation and pursue peaceful coexistence and shared prosperity of nations, regardless of differences in social systems, ideologies, histories, cultures and stages of development.

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The writer is the Chinese ambassador to ASEAN.