By Gu Hongyu, Zong Wei

As early as 2012, China put forward the concept of building a community of a shared future for mankind, where every country takes the reasonable concerns of others while pursuing its own interests. President Xi Jinping has also reiterated this concept in public speeches. Building a community of a shared future for mankind, proposed based on the innate goodness of human nature, emerges as not only a significant supplement to the prevailing western theories of international relations, but also a new sustainable approach to common development.

The theory of realism is built around the basic and core viewpoints of state power, anarchy (or Hobbes’ natural state), national interests and the innate evil of human nature. Based on the pessimistic theory of human nature presented by classical realistic philosophers (such as Hobbes and Machiavelli), the theory of realism regards human nature as “evil in nature”, thus deriving the logical assumption that the state has to pursue great power in order to survive in international anarchy; general assumptions of idealism highlight cooperation, oppose wars and conflicts, and center on the notion that human nature can be transformed through cultivation; and the theory of constructivism stresses the interaction between nations and the international system. Obviously, the three theories all acknowledge the assumptions of international anarchy and “the innate evil of human nature”. Compared to the undoubted assumptions of realism, assumptions of idealism and constructivism are potentially confusing and misleading. Although the two theories have their own emphasis, in essence, both of them have avoided the main point. Unlike what is perceived in eastern cultures, neither of them preemptively refutes the theoretical assumptions of “anarchy” and “the innate evil”.

The theory of idealism attempts to expound the extension of the core assumptions of realism instead of denying it. It highlights cooperation, opposes wars and conflicts, and emphasizes the notion that human nature can be transformed through cultivation. Therefore, it is believed that international cooperation would be attainable if human nature is transformed through cultivation. The theory of liberalism is rooted in the political philosophy of John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant. The basic assumption of liberalism is that human nature can be improved, although it is self-interested. For example, Kant stressed that with the development of civil society and the rule of law, the nation will evolve from the Hobbesian state of the law of jungle into a state of the rule of law, thus achieving the fundamental goal of “permanent peace”. In other words, from the perspective of eastern cultures which uphold “the inherent goodness of human nature” and hold that the international community are not anarchic but united and harmonious, Kant’s theory of permanent peace is not a refutation but a supplement and amendment to the theory of realism.

The theory of constructivism also made a summary based on the realistic assumption of anarchy. Alexander Wendt believes that the structure of the international system is constructed and motivated by shared social ideas. Specifically, Wendt classified shared social ideas that dominates most nations’ perception to the international system into three types: Hobbesian culture, Lockean culture and Kantian culture. The three concepts of cultural sociology serve as the general classification of the international systems (structures) and anarchy. Obviously, the theory of constructivism has not fundamentally denied the core assumptions of realism. Therefore, the three contemporary western theories of international relations are essentially based on the theoretical assumption of “the evil in human nature” originated from western Biblical culture and the assumption of “anarchy” proposed by Hobbes. This reveals the inadequacies of western theories of international relations.

Influenced by western theories of international relations, most western countries attempt to associate China’s each action to “evil”. This can be best exemplified by recent crackdown on Huawei by the US government. In fact, it is unwise for the United States to reject Huawei’s 5G technology. There is only one earth, one world. President Xi once said that the international community is increasingly becoming a “community of a shared future”, in which everyone is being more interconnected than ever. In the face of the complex situation of the world economy and other global challenges, no country can manage alone or stand aloof. Nowadays,the world is facing great obstacles: global non-traditional security issues such as food security, resource shortage, climate changes, cyber attacks, environmental pollution, epidemic diseases emerge in endlessly, which has posed severe challenges to the international order and human survival. Everyone on the earth, despite nationality, beliefs, and personal willingness, has been involved in and become part of the community of a shared future. A global value that advocates to meet the challenges together is taking form and gaining world-wide recognition.

While evolving from the 1G era to the 4G era, mobile communication network was largely applied to facilitate interpersonal contact. Compared with 4G technology, 5G technology has been significantly improved in terms of its application scope and the performance of many key techniques. 5G technology, as an important technology supporting the new round of scientific revolution and industrial transformation, will inevitably become a turning point for social and economic development. Despite the intense competition in 5G technology, whichever country who takes the lead will eventually enable mankind to better cope with common challenges and to build a global family that upholds harmonious and sustainable development. Therefore, US crackdown on Huawei and TikTok will lead to further misunderstanding, hinder political, economic and cultural exchanges, and finally go against global prosperity and common development.

(Gu is a lecturer at the English Department of Faculty of Foreign Languages and Cultures in Kunming University of Science And Technology; Zong is a Ph.D candidate at the School of Ethnology and Sociology, Ming Zu University of China)