Chinese Premier Li Qiang, representing totalitarian dictator Xi Jinping, told attendees at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday that the world faces the threat of returning to the “law of the jungle” and touted Xi’s “global governance initiative” as the solution.
Li’s address did not directly name President Donald Trump or the United States as the major threat to China’s ideal global order, but repeatedly condemned policies associated with the head of state, including the imposition of tariffs and diplomacy favoring nations that share an ideology. He notably referenced the two most high-profile wars attracting attention at the General Assembly this year – Israel’s war against the genocidal jihadists of Hamas and the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by close China ally Russia – in passing, without asserting China’s position outside of generally wishing for peace.
In addition to promoting China’s colonialist Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Xi’s various personal philosophies, Li’s speech served to offer a dire alternative to a world rejecting Chinese communist leadership.
“Solidarity lifts everyone up while division drags all down,” Li declared. “The road ahead might be hard and bumpy, but when all countries unite as one and collaborate in good faith, our strengths will converge into a mighty force with which we can withstand any headwind and cross any hurdle.”
Li opened his speech by noting the 80th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly and the end of World War II, which China celebrated with a massive parade in Beijing this month. He asserted that “peace and development are the strongest aspiration shared by the people of all countries” and the international order was built upon the ashes of fascism. Following the pattern of several other speeches at the General Assembly this year, Xi’s henchman warned that peace was increasingly fragile, blaming “unilateralism and Cold War mentality.” Chinese regime propaganda regularly refers to any concerns about China’s malign influence around the world – from its engaging in genocide to its debt colonialism to its support for the world’s authoritarian regimes – as “Cold War mentality.”
“The international rules and order built over the past 80 years are under serious challenge and the once effective international system is constantly disrupted,” Li claimed. “The various problems induced are distressing and worrying.”
“Should the era of the law of the jungle return and the weak be left as prey to the strong,” he warned, “human society would face even more bloodshed and brutality. As members of the global family, we must uphold justice while pursuing our own interests.”
Li condemned “unscrupulous acts of hegemonism and bullying” for destabilizing the world, but did not name them or identify any culprits. Expectedly omitted from that condemnation was China’s own invasion of colonization of South China Sea territory that belongs to sovereign neighbors such as Vietnam and the Philippines, or the aforementioned invasion of Ukraine.
Li did specifically condemn tariffs, a barely veiled reference to President Trump’s recalibration of American trade policy this year.
“A major cause of the current global economic doldrums is the rise in unilateral and protectionist measures, such as tariff hikes and erection of walls and barriers,” the premier said. “We should collaborate more closely to identify and expand convergence of interests, promote universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, and help each other succeed by moving forward in the same direction.”
Li offered “China’s wisdom” as a panacea for the problems facing the world, specifically listing several of Xi Jinping’s personal philosophies, most prominently the “Global Governance Initiative,” a plan to impose Chinese-style authoritarian rule on the entire planet. That initiative, Li claimed, “underscores the principles of adhering to sovereign equality, abiding by international rule of law, practicing multilateralism, advocating the people centered approach, and focusing on taking real actions.”
Conversely, he added, an “obsession with so-called civilizational superiority and ideology-based circles only breeds more division and confrontation.”
Li concluded his speech with an appeal to climate alarmism and the “establishment of a worldwide A.I. governance organization.”
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