Xi Jinping Outlines Vision for a New World Order
The Chinese President called for a more equitable, multipolar world at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, pledging financial aid to member states as an alternative to US-led global governance
- Chinese President Xi Jinping presented a vision for an "equal and orderly multipolar world" to serve as an alternative to the current US-led global order.
- He is using the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as a platform to promote this vision, urging members to resist a "Cold War mentality" and build a fairer governance system.
- To support the initiative, China has pledged billions in financial aid and loans to SCO member states to enhance cooperation in trade, energy, and technology.
- The vision explicitly opposes unilateral actions like US tariffs, advocating instead for a multilateral trading system to counter US influence.
At the opening of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, Chinese President Xi Jinping presented his vision for a new global order based on an "equal and orderly multipolar world."
Speaking to over 20 world leaders, Xi announced billions in financial assistance for SCO member states and urged them to resist a "Cold War mentality" to build a fairer global governance system.
The summit is being used as a platform to present an alternative vision for global governance, intended to counter and reduce the influence of the US-led world order.
Xi stated that the SCO has already created a new model for international relations.
"We should support an equal and orderly multipolarisation of the world, a universal economic globalisation, and promote the building of a more just and equitable global governance system," he said.
As part of the initiative, China pledged 2 billion yuan ($280 million) in free assistance to member states this year and an additional 10 billion yuan in loans to the SCO's bank.
"We must leverage our large market to improve the level of trade and investment facilitation," Xi said, calling for the group to enhance cooperation in energy, infrastructure, science, and technology.
Leaders from Central Asia, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and India’s Narendra Modi, attended the opening ceremony, which was intended as a display of global solidarity.
The SCO, a security-focused organisation that began with six Eurasian nations, has since expanded to include ten permanent members and 16 dialogue partners and observers.
The Chinese president also urged allies to "oppose the Cold War mentality and group confrontation" and support a multilateral trading system, which he noted has been undermined by US President Donald Trump's tariff wars.
These tariffs have disproportionately affected developing nations like India, which saw a 50% tariff on its exports last week.
On Sunday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that China plays a "fundamental" role in supporting global multilateralism.
Analysts say China is using its largest summit of the year to showcase an alternative vision for global governance at a time of uncertain US policy and geopolitical volatility.
Beijing also used the summit as an opportunity to mend relations with New Delhi.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in China for his first visit in seven years, and Xi both agreed that their countries are development partners, not rivals, and discussed ways to improve trade relations amid global tariff uncertainty.
