Ambassador Wei Wei Calls for Upholding and Enriching Panchsheel

June 11, 2014

New Delhi: Terming Panchsheel or the Five Principles of peaceful co existence as “the fundamentals of International Law”, His Excellency Wei Wei, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to India today said that Panchsheel has “significantly contributed to peace, stability and development in Asia and world at large”. The Ambassador was delivering the Keynote Address during the Conference on “60th Anniversary of Panchsheel: Relevance for India-China Relations,” jointly organised by the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) and the Embassy of People’s Republic of China, New Delhi.

Speaking further, the ambassador said that these principles have inspired the methodology to handle the problems left over by history and to settle international disputes by peaceful means and have provided a theoretical foundation for a more fair and reasonable international order.

He also emphasised on the need for multi-polarisation of the world and greater representation of developing countries in international affairs. “The UN, G20, SCO, BRICS and other multinational regimes should get full scope for the role they play, with a view to make international governance more than just reasonable”, insisted the Ambassador.

Highlighting the importance of Panchsheel in today’s scenario, the Ambassador said that the five principles hold relevance even today and can be instrumental in guiding the states while conducting diplomacy. “We should unswervingly stick to our independent foreign policies, uphold the spirit of non alignment and work for a new international order,” he said.

Speaking further, the Ambassador advocated equal sovereignty among all states, insisting that the right of all nations to choose their own social system and path of development should be respected and protected.

The Ambassador reiterated President Xi Jinping’s proposal in the recent Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, about building common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security in Asia. He spoke of promoting a new security concept, featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit equality and coordination.

Mr Gautam Bambawale, Joint Secretary, East Asia, Ministry of External Affairs, in a written speech, read out at the conference, remarked that Panchsheel provided an alternate voice to the newly independent countries in Asia. He added that India and China are celebrating the year 2014 as “a year of friendly exchanges” and the bilateral relationship between the two states has reached a stage where it can be consolidated and taken to the next level.

Earlier, in his welcome remarks, Director General, IDSA Dr Arvind Gupta, said that “Panchsheel has become an important part of the international lexicon and these principles provide a basis for not only interstate relations but also the construction of a new international order”. He added that India and China have shown great maturity and pragmatism in managing their bilateral ties and that the two must cooperate if this century is to be “the Asian century”. He emphasised that the focus must be on going beyond the symbolism of the occasion in order to revive the spirit of Panchasheel and work together for mutual benefit and for regional and global peace, since the commemorative conference provides an opportunity to look back, to look at the present and to look ahead to the future of Sino-Indian relations.

A number of eminent Indian and Chinese scholars participated in the daylong deliberations on Panchasheel, in particular its historical context and its contemporary relevance for India China relations in global and regional contexts.