China’s Global Security Initiative is Timely to the Global Security Questions
Alan Collins Mpewo
Historically, societies have been composed of both brave and timid people who have worn ideologies which if placed on an extensive social platter, the hardened principles of each individual clash. Conflict! It’s an inevitable reality that unfortunately, every society since time immemorial, has had to endure. Along the way, the said societies have always birthed ways of countering that ill. The modalities there in have both formal and high-handed. Formal through negotiations, mediation, arbitration, and reconciliation, and without much emphasis, the high hand-handiness being retaliation with reasonable, and sometimes unjustifiable force. That notwithstanding, there have been bullies in each community that has dominated this world, which informed the human race in cultivating the noble concept of security. I termed it “noble,” because while it has been misused by forces of tyranny, it has greater measure and has greater testimony of success behind it.
China’s President, Xi Jinping recently issued a Global Security Initiative (GSI) in which he called upon countries globally to harness the concept in a struggle to find better ways of solving the global insecurity epidemic. China for a couple of decades has fronted mutual respect on its international relations realm. Political correctness therefore in a concept of mutual respect becomes an abyss of destruction for already established foundations of peace and safety, since it merely undermines all efforts with the subtle aspirations of the other actors. The first core principle as highlighted in the initiative is commitment to the vision of common and sustainable security. While it’s true that the various world actors have all forms of weapons (disclosed and unknown), restraint should be the frontrunner as compared to immediate aggression. There has been an undervalue of the effects of war by numerous countries who disregard the decades that linger to go to waste while the affected people seek to rebuild that which has been destroyed, and sadly, perhaps not to be reshaped.
The accompanying principle is the respect of border territories (the inevitable lines that separate the territories that engulf us) is the harnessing of state sovereignty. The message that’s being hooted is that however strong a state is, the young and weaker nations must be granted equal respect. It goes without saying, that the foregoing principle has been the most disrespected in this century to a point that some perpetual invaders take pride in such despicable modus of operation. Staying committed to international charters like the UN Charter is the way to go altogether. This invites yet another recommendation from the same Initiative, keeping committed to the security concerns of all countries across the globe. This is informed by the fact that countries in all corners in the world deserve an equal peaceful organization which can only be guaranteed by each country being another’s keeper.
The initiative equally recognizes and is alive to the fact that sometimes peace fails and there isn’t much to it except conflict. The initiative therefore proposes that there should be a streamlined form of conflict resolution that’s established to enable all countries engaged in the conflict have an equal voice in the resolution engagements. The initiative also takes a stretch to have other countries that form part of the United Nations to take part in the reconciliation. This may be as regards creation of balance of power through consultations to make sure that all circumstances involved are ably understood and put into contemplation by the arbitrators in choosing the most appropriate methods to cause peace reigning once again.
While all has been said and done, the main priorities of this proposed form of cooperation should be propelled by jointly raising a voice against any war globally that would risk the use of nuclear warfare in a pursuit of winning war by any involved countries. History has showed that such a war is a lost war, and with the growing trends in the number of holders of nuclear weapons. Secondly, is the need to form a more robust coalition of joint forces to preserve peace broadly across the globe. This is aimed at increasing capacity for the already existent serving forces globally. This will also be through asserting that the forces shouldn’t be biased in their operations in order to serve the proper purpose for which they are formed.
GSI also makes it clear that for peace to prevail globally, we must avoid unilateralism, block formation, power politics and confrontation and that taking into consideration each other’s legitimate security concerns are key when it comes to sustainable global security.
It goes without saying that some parts of the world like Africa have for many decades been sidelined in the resolution deliberations on the UN high table, and that’s as unfair as it will always be. The initiative has raised this as a ground for possible consideration given that the continent has a unifying body, the African Union, which shows the possibilities is a single binding position on any security contentious matter, should they arise, from the bloc. The initiative isn’t blind to the Middle East question either. There have been many years of raging war, and it is probably time to take a stand on everlasting peace than the biased and ill brewed motives. By and large, the initiative contemplates and gives robust reasons for the need of cooperation in as far as global secure is concerned. It’s in sincere hope therefore, that such an amazing initiative doesn’t go to waste, as a consequence of dissent from countries expected to adopt the same.
Alan Collins Mpewo is a Lawyer and Senior Research Fellow, Development Watch Centre.
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