Amid global challenges, Global South needs to explore Bandung Spirit even more: experts at roundtable

A roundtable on carrying forward the Bandung Spirit was held in Beijing on Thursday. Diplomats and scholars from the Global South and beyond gathered to explore the significance and relevance of the Bandung Spirit in promoting development and navigating the complexities of today's global landscape.
The Bandung Conference, also known as the Asian-African Conference, was held on April 18, 1955, in Bandung, Indonesia. It marked the first time that the countries of the Global South united to oppose imperialism and colonialism in defense of their sovereign rights and a more equitable world. Participants proposed the Bandung Spirit with "solidarity, friendship and cooperation" at the core, initiating the Non-Aligned Movement and South-South cooperation.
Wang Chao, president of Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs (CPIFA), said at the roundtable that the pressing task facing the Global South today is development and striving toward modernization together. This goal is encountering challenges, noted experts at the roundtable. They expressed their concerns over the current global issues, including unilateralism, protectionism, climate change, unbalanced development, and especially the trade war. They believe the Bandung Spirit remains the key to resolving the global governance impasse, offering a practical choice.
In the current global context, it is even more crucial for countries in the Global South to unite, support one another, deepen exchanges across various fields, and enhance regional, sub-regional, and cross-regional cooperation, thereby injecting more positive energy and certainty into global development, Wang said.
Indonesian Ambassador to China Djauhari Oratmangun stressed that Indonesia and China have agreed to synergize their flagship policies - the Global Maritime Fulcrum and the Belt and Road Initiative. He said, "we must now work hand in hand to showcase the valuable success of this cooperation," adding that by driving greater industrial innovation and modernization, development and progress can be spread across the region.
Khurshid Kasuri, former foreign minister of Pakistan, shared the example of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He said it is a living example of collaboration that rejects hegemony, domination, and Cold War-style politics, advocating that, in a multipolar world order, developing countries can pursue independent development paths free from external coercion.
At the roundtable, participants also put forward proposals on how to promote the Bandung Spirit and advance modernization together. Imron Cotan, senior advisor to the Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, raised proposals such as establishing an Asia-Africa Economic Corridor - a multilateral trade and investment framework building on ASEAN-AU cooperation; creating an Asia-Africa Trade Resilience Fund - a pooled reserve to provide credit insurance, hedge against tariff shocks, etc.
Cotan, also former Indonesian ambassador to China, told the Global Times that the Global South doesn't want to confront anyone, but it should also not dance to the music being played outside of the Global South. "We have all the ingredients to move forward. We need to transform the spirit of the first Bandung Conference in 1955 into a new claim, taking into account the current predicament of global governance. It is timely and urgent for the Global South to govern ourselves," he said.
Cotan recalled a speech delivered by President Xi Jinping back in 2013, in which Xi said, "The international community should advocate the vision of comprehensive security, common security and cooperative security so as to turn the global village into a big stage for common development, rather than an arena where gladiators fight each other." Cotan believes these words carry notable relevance in today's context. This world is so large to be shared together, not a battleground for gladiators, Cotan added.
The roundtable, themed, "The Global South: Carrying forward the Bandung Spirit and marching together toward modernization," was jointly organized by Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs (CPIFA) and Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Beijing.