The Rise of the Global South and China's Role
NIU Haibin，ZHOU Yuyuan，LAI Yuan，LI Yanliang，ZHOU Shengsheng
source： SIIS Center for International Communications
As changes the world has not seen in a century are unfolding at a faster pace, developing countries at large, though being the most vulnerable group amid multiple international crises, have surprisingly demonstrated strong resilience in their continued pursuit of international peace and common development. Developing countries have become more vocal and proactive in the major international agendas for addressing climate change, achieving sustainable development, demanding for political settlement of the Ukraine crisis. This has triggered heated discussions of what is known as the Global South phenomenon in the international public opinion and the diplomatic domain. Even as the United States and the West continue to co-opt the Global South, Western media has cast the ChinaGlobal South relationship as one fraught with controversy, demonizing China as a country that stops at nothing to secure a dominant position in the developing world. In fact, China has officially stated its position multiple times: it is the world's largest developing country and a natural member of the Global South. China not only has a long history of friendly exchanges with countries of the Global South, but also grows and prospers together with the Global South through South-South cooperation projects such as the Belt and Road Initiative. China and Global South members share distinctive characteristics, such as an independent political identity, a historical mission of development and revival, and a common commitment to fairness and justice. China proactively supports international mechanisms such as BRICS cooperation and the Group of 77 to play their positive roles in expanding the influence of the Global South. There is no denying that the Global South is still a loose, leaderless group of countries with relatively different levels of development. At the same time, the Global South has many emerging economies with relatively strong momentum, huge economic potential to follow the path of sustainable development, and considerable political will to promote international peace and development. As the Global South itself grows more complex and holds huge potential, it is particularly important to understand the Global South and its relationship with China in the right perspective, and to better promote China's positive role in the overall development of the Global South. To discuss these issues, the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies held a seminar on themes related to the Global South and organized a research team to conduct preliminary research on the themes. It is hoped that this research report can help readers to better understand the international significance of the rise of the Global South and China's role in it.