China Is Creating the Latest Form of Human Civilization: An Interview with Renowned American Sinologist Ken Hammond
I. Chinese Civilization and China’s Revolution, Reform, and Development
Q (Zhao Dingqi, hereafter the same): Professor Hammond, hello! You have a deep connection with China. What were the reasons you chose to work and live in China in the 1980s? Why did you choose Chinese history as your primary research direction?
A (Kenneth Hammond, hereafter the same): I became interested in China when I was about eight years old. I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, which has a very fine art museum with a significant collection of Chinese art. My parents often took me and my brother to the museum, and I was fascinated by the Chinese paintings and the writing on them. As I grew up, events in Asia in the 1960s were increasingly reported in the news. When I was in high school, my older brother went to the battlefields of Vietnam. I felt that Asia was a place that required a deeper understanding. I read books about Vietnam and Indonesia, and of course, China. In 1967, I went to university and became involved in political activities opposing the Vietnam War and promoting a socialist transformation in the United States and the world. Like many young people in America and Europe at the time, I was very excited by the stories of the revolution then taking place in China. I began reading the works of Marx and Mao Zedong and studying Chinese history. I even took a conversational Chinese class.
In 1970, I was involved in the Kent State incident [1], where the Ohio National Guard opened fire, killing four students and wounding nine during a protest condemning the U.S. invasion of Cambodia. I was prosecuted for my political activities and spent a year and a half fighting the case in and out of court. My academic career was interrupted. I worked in construction during the 1970s. Nonetheless, I persisted in reading and following developments in China—from Nixon’s visit in 1972 to Chairman Mao’s passing in 1976, and then to the beginning of Reform and Opening-up in 1978.
In 1980, I lost my right leg in a car accident, which meant I could no longer do the work I was accustomed to, but the financial compensation from the accident allowed me to do other things. What I wanted to do then was go to China to continue my studies. I had maintained my interest in China, and the early 1980s was a period of major transformation there; I wanted to see the reality of China with my own eyes and try to learn Chinese. Consequently, I went to Beijing, where I studied for a summer and then went to work for an American company responsible for language programs. Between 1982 and 1987, I spent most of my time in Beijing working for CET (China Education Tours). In 1987, I returned to the United States and entered the graduate school of Harvard University to study Chinese history. I have always felt that China is one of the most important countries in the world, yet most Westerners know very little about the true face of China and its history.
Q: This May, you published a new book, The Chinese Revolution and the Trajectory of a Socialist Future, and you have another forthcoming book, China and the World: 1949–2022. Compared to your previous works, what are the new features and perspectives in these two books?
A: Since receiving my PhD in History and East Asian Languages in 1994, I have been teaching at New Mexico State University. Over the years, most of my research and publications have been on the political and cultural history of Ming-dynasty China, although I have also written some articles on contemporary China. In the past few years, my scholarly research has focused primarily on the early modern political economy of China, from the Song dynasty to the late Qing, roughly the historical period from the 10th to the 18th centuries. I view this stage as a unique form of early capitalism, one could say with Chinese characteristics.
My new book, The Chinese Revolution and the Trajectory of a Socialist Future, is aimed at a broader audience—ordinary people and political activists trying to understand contemporary China and its current situation. My basic view is that China’s revolutionary path originated from the experience of imperialist oppression and exploitation of China from the 1840s to the 1940s, often referred to as the "Century of Humiliation" [2]. It underwent a long and arduous process to integrate the theories of Marx, Engels, and Lenin with Chinese reality. It is precisely for this reason that the Communist Party of China (CPC) was able to lead the Chinese revolution to victory, liberate China from imperialist rule, and embark on the path of building socialism—with the ultimate goal of realizing communism. This is a complex process that is often misinterpreted by Westerners (including many on the political left).
My other forthcoming book, China and the World: 1949–2022, is a history of the relations between China and the rest of the world since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. It traces the development of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence [3] that China has adhered to over the years—mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence. At the same time, it traces the changes in specific relationships, such as China’s relations with the Soviet Union and the United States, or the way China interacts with developing countries—from aid to Africa in the 1960s to the dynamic development of the Belt and Road Initiative today. This book is also intended to help non-specialists understand the complexities and realities of China’s position in the modern world.
Q: How do you perceive the characteristics of Chinese civilization and Chinese history? What differences exist between it and Western civilization? Why does the West always harbor so many misunderstandings about China?
A: China has a long history that follows its own line of development and transformation. There are many factors passed down to the present—such as the written language, the centrality of the family, the emphasis on education, and the breadth of historical perspective—which have shaped China’s social and political life for thousands of years. Of course, dramatic changes occurred in this process; the economic base shaped the cultural superstructure in unique ways, forming a long trajectory of intermittent development. During periods of dynastic transition, growth and expansion were interrupted by turmoil and destruction, but commercial capitalism repeatedly revived in urban manufacturing and commodity-oriented agriculture. In the 10th–13th centuries, the 15th–early 17th centuries, and the 18th century, China reached heights of prosperity and global economic leadership. It was only in the early 19th century, with the impact of Western imperialism, that the long trajectory of China’s unique indigenous political economy came to an end.
Some key features of Chinese historical civilization mark China’s difference from the West. In fact, today's China can be seen as the latest stage of civilizational development; it follows a path different from that of Europe and its offshoots, producing a series of ideas, behaviors, institutions, and experiences. These are primarily embodied in written records and other forms of material culture, which constitute a rich heritage and a cultural treasure house, providing the Chinese people with their own unique ways of managing affairs and responding to challenges. Many of these are reflected in Confucianism, as well as in China’s Buddhist and Taoist traditions. Harmony, social responsibility, individual integrity, and agency, as well as the role of the state as a tool to promote the well-being of the people—though these ideas were often distorted in practice by the material power of the ruling classes—remain at the core of Chinese political culture and are still visible in contemporary society.
Even for Westerners who sincerely wish to understand China, it is difficult to comprehend the unique characteristics of Chinese civilization. They often find it hard to accept the notion that the Chinese people can do things in their own way, and that these ways are completely rational and suited to their needs and aspirations—yet differ from the cultural system of Western civilization, because the trajectory of Western civilization itself is quite different from that of China.
Q: Historically, China was a leading global power and civilization, but after 1840, it underwent a very tortuous journey. The Chinese revolution led by the CPC profoundly changed the situation since 1840 where China was "passive and vulnerable to attack." In your view, what were the reasons for the success of the Chinese revolution? What impact did it have on 20th-century history?
A: I have long said that when future historians look back at the 20th century, they will write that the Chinese revolution—particularly the land reform carried out in the early years of New China—was the most important event of that era. China had been one of the world's most advanced and mature civilizations, perhaps the most important center of economic production, at the heart of global trade networks, possessing technology and institutions that were the envy of people worldwide. However, after 1840, it was displaced by the impact of Western imperialism driven by the low-cost products of the Industrial Revolution, a process carried out with the support of the modern military power of Western imperialism. After years of struggle, inspired by the 1917 Russian Bolshevik Revolution and influenced by the bankruptcy of the "liberal democratic" myth of the West in China following the 1919 Versailles Peace Conference, a revolutionary movement emerged led by the Communist Party of China, founded in 1921.
In its early years, the CPC struggled for a long time to find the best plan to advance the Chinese revolution. It turned out that policies and strategies drawn from the experience of the European communist movement proved to be ill-suited to the actual conditions of Chinese society. Based on his investigation of the peasant movement in Hunan in the mid-1920s, Mao Zedong argued that the peasants were actually agricultural proletarians and the natural allies of the urban working class, the latter of which was only a small fraction of the Chinese population. By establishing a worker-peasant alliance, China could carry out the struggle to break free from imperialist rule and establish a new state that could undertake the tasks of socialist construction. This was a key factor in the victory of the revolution in 1949 and the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
Land reform swept away the last remnants of the old landlord-based agricultural economy, cleared the path for the development of social productive forces, and made land a public resource rather than the private property of a small social elite. Without the worker-peasant alliance and the elimination of the old system of land ownership, it would have been impossible for China to embark on the socialist path.
Q: Since the Reform and Opening-up in 1978, China’s economy has developed rapidly, and it has now become the world's second-largest economy. What do you believe are the reasons for the success of the Chinese economy since Reform and Opening-up?
A: By 1978, China had made great strides in improving the lives of its people. Although there were often debates and disagreements over how to best advance the process of socialist construction in the first 30 years after the founding of New China, major progress was still achieved. Life expectancy for the Chinese people doubled, infant mortality dropped significantly, and there were major improvements in housing, healthcare, and education. However, the material living conditions of the people remained relatively poor and had not fully realized the socialist vision. Socialism is built on the foundation of economic prosperity, while communism is built on the foundation of material abundance.
In 1978, the CPC decided to implement the policy of Reform and Opening-up. This became the core of the Chinese economy’s further progress and development. The CPC leadership recognized that the decision to use market mechanisms to develop the economy would bring rapid growth to China and significantly improve the material living conditions of the people. But they also understood that this would produce dangerous contradictions, such as corruption, inequality, and environmental pressure. To obtain the maximum benefit from Reform and Opening-up while avoiding negative consequences, it was necessary to uphold the socialist system and the leadership of the Communist Party.
This has been an important experience over the past 40-plus years. As Reform and Opening-up deepened, China once faced severe challenges. Corruption emerged, a gap between the rich and the poor was generated alongside rapid economic growth, and the environment suffered a certain degree of damage; the private economy grew into an important part of the overall economy. Without the leadership of the CPC, these problems might have spiraled out of control, and China might even have become a vassal of the U.S.-centric global capitalist system.
Instead, after a period of "hiding our capabilities and biding our time" [4] during the 1990s and the first decade of the 21st century, China became more successful, more confident, and steadily resolved the contradictions arising in the process of Reform and Opening-up. Particularly since the election of Xi Jinping as General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2012, which initiated the New Era, China’s large-scale anti-corruption struggle has achieved remarkable results, and the work of poverty alleviation has lifted nearly 100 million people out of absolute poverty. The lives of all Chinese people will continue to be elevated and improved. China has become a world leader in addressing environmental issues such as climate change and global warming, and is at the forefront of the development and deployment of alternative energy.
Success in promoting economic growth, improving people's lives, and effectively responding to various challenges in the development process can only be achieved under the leadership of the CPC. This is the historical experience of China since Reform and Opening-up.
II. The Sinicization and Modernization of Marxism and the Great Achievements of China in the New Era
Q: Since Xi Jinping was elected General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2012, China has undergone changes in many aspects. How do you understand the achievements made in the construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics under the leadership of Xi Jinping, as well as the various changes that have taken place in China?
A: The period since Xi Jinping was elected General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2012 is generally referred to as the "New Era," which in my view is a very appropriate expression. As mentioned above, for several decades, Chinese leaders maintained a low profile and "bided their time" [5] in relations with the West. During that period, China acquired capital, technology, and other information and experiences from the global capitalist system that helped drive economic development. It was an era of exchange and engagement with the West for the purpose of improving and developing the Chinese economy and raising the material quality of life for the people. During this period, China never abandoned the socialist road, never gave up the path of seeking a new and better life for the people and creating the material conditions for the ultimate realization of socialist distribution, and never abandoned the ultimate goal of achieving a communist society. However, the initial stage of reform was characterized by a conscious effort to maintain stable and productive relations with the West, especially the United States, which meant adopting an attitude of patience and forbearance.
By the end of the first decade of the 21st century, China had already achieved significant developmental results. High-speed economic growth had been sustained for decades. China weathered the shock of the 2008 global financial crisis with minimal damage and loss because the socialist core of its economy enabled it to invest massive resources to buffer the effects of layoffs and the collapse of Western demand. Innovation and creativity in industrial and technological fields were enhanced. Social protections in healthcare, education, housing, and other areas steadily improved. In short, it became increasingly clear that the path of reform China had taken was achieving the intended results in many respects. However, serious problems remained.
Corruption was a persistent challenge to the socialist ideals of justice and equity. Inequality between China’s richest and poorest widened—even though everyone’s quality of life significantly improved. The environmental impact of rapid economic development threatened the quality of daily life—particularly in large cities. As the second decade of the 21st century arrived, China’s capacity to address these concerns reached a new level. Xi Jinping’s election marked a turning point; China entered a new stage of reform, and the Chinese people entered a New Era full of political and cultural confidence. This is reflected in the many initiatives, actions, and policies of the Party and government in handling the contradictions of development.
Under the leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, a vigorous anti-corruption struggle began. This campaign has lasted for more than ten years and continues to weed out those in important positions and public trust who abuse their power for private gain. The New Era is also an era for addressing inequality and for regulating and guiding the healthy development of capital. China’s massive and successful efforts have lifted hundreds of millions of people above the globally defined absolute poverty line and will continue to improve the lives of people across the country. The emphasis on and supervision of the study and application of Marxist theory in China goes hand in hand with new efforts to curb the negative influences of the market, while simultaneously seeking to continue utilizing market mechanisms to develop productive forces.
Perhaps most importantly, in the long run, China has become a world leader in addressing the existential crisis of environmental destruction and climate change. China is the largest producer of alternative energy technologies and implements more alternative energy than any other country. It has reduced its dependence on coal to below 50% of its energy supply and is implementing concrete measures to combat global warming.
All of this is part of the New Era under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. This is a New Era in which the Chinese people are full of confidence and have achieved great success, even though challenges and contradictions remain. China has entered a moderately prosperous society [6], and its determination to build a socialist society is clearer than ever before. The risks and challenges of reform remain, and China still faces serious threats from the United States and other Western imperialist countries. But today’s China is providing aid and a viable model for other countries seeking to build a better future. This is also a characteristic of the New Era.
Q: In October 2022, the Communist Party of China convened its 20th National Congress. What is your understanding and perception of the CPC’s 20th National Congress?
A: The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was an important moment in many respects. It took place after the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC in 1921. It marked the end of the first decade of the New Era, a period in which the Party acted vigorously and with confidence.
The National Congresses of the CPC have historically been occasions to summarize the Party's recent work, evaluate successful experiences as well as deficiencies, and determine goals for the coming period, pointing the way toward the next steps of transformation and the direction of socialist development. This Congress was no exception. Starting with Xi Jinping’s report, delegates heard a wealth of information regarding China’s achievements under the Party's leadership, divided into groups to discuss and debate current issues, and made decisions on how to continue work over the next five years and beyond. The election of a new Central Committee was the climax of the Congress.
This Congress demonstrated that the CPC is a party guided by Marxism-Leninism integrated with China’s specific realities; a party committed to serving the people with the goal of building socialism. It addressed the myriad concrete problems China faces at home and abroad, demonstrating China’s determination to persevere in the face of challenges and its refusal and resistance to the efforts of external forces to slow down or sabotage China’s development or to obstruct China’s return as an important and responsible participant in global affairs.
The future is always an unfinished book; even the most valuable and precious plans, and the most dedicated and capable activists, cannot guarantee success. However, the 20th National Congress displayed both the results of the CPC’s century of struggle and its determination to see it through to the end. This is a moment full of hope for China and the world. People everywhere should support and praise the great cause China is engaged in—seeking a just and equitable future for working people within a framework of sustainable economic development and a vibrant society.
Q: On June 2 of this year, Xi Jinping inspected the China National Archives of Publications and Culture and the Chinese Academy of History, and attended a symposium on cultural inheritance and development. He pointed out: "To open up and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics on the profound foundation of more than 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, the 'Two Combinations'—combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with China’s excellent traditional culture—is the only way... This is a regular understanding we have reached in exploring the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and it is our greatest 'magic weapon' for success." What are your views on this?
A: One of the most important factors in the success of the Chinese Revolution was the creative application of the historical materialist view developed in the works of Marx, Engels, and their successors. Marxism is a dialectic of theory and practice—that is, the analysis of material reality produces theoretical propositions, which are then tested in practice, and refined and revised according to practice, thereby entering new stages of application in practice and further refinement. When the CPC was founded in 1921, and during the first decade or so of its struggle, profound debates and practical efforts took place within the Party to understand China’s real material conditions and how to best develop and advance the revolutionary movement. Marxism is not a simple blueprint or template imposed on social and economic reality to be implemented in a mechanical or deterministic way. In the 1920s and early 1930s, Mao Zedong’s investigation of the peasant movement in Hunan and his in-depth analysis of the social conditions and class relations of the peasantry in the Jiangxi Soviet made significant contributions to understanding China’s reality. The CPC recognized that in China, the agricultural population was essentially a component of an early capitalist, early modern socio-economy; they were agricultural proletarians selling their labor to landlords or rich peasants, and were therefore natural allies of the emerging urban-centered industrial working class. This creative use of materialist analysis provided the fundamental theoretical breakthrough for the victory of the Chinese Revolution. The course of the revolution was based on the analytical method of Marxist historical materialism, developing through a continuous dialectical process of theory-practice-theory.
As the guiding ideology of China’s socialist cause, Marxism is not a dogmatic text or a set of commandments, but a living, dynamic method of analysis and reflection that is constantly revised based on practical experience. This does not merely look at the specific present; it must also include drawing on knowledge and experience accumulated in the past. Based on written records from 3,300 years ago, as well as archaeological and other evidence, China possesses the world’s longest historical culture. China has its own path of development that differs from the West and other regions of the world. Marxism originated in Europe. Marx himself was very clear that his analysis of capital was based on the specific conditions of Britain and, to some extent, other Western European countries. He did not claim this was the sole model or a universal pattern for understanding history everywhere. But Marx’s method—his elaboration of the analytical methods of dialectical and historical materialism—can be creatively applied to other countries, and this method has achieved historic success in China.
China’s long history has left behind a rich and complex body of knowledge and experience. In the pursuit of building socialism and establishing a new economic and social order, one must investigate, analyze, and understand how to utilize elements of this historical legacy in the present. China has its own history of dialectical thinking and analysis, such as the sixty-four hexagrams of the I Ching (Book of Changes). The Chinese government has thousands of years of experience in rationalized civil administration. The Confucian intellectual tradition is itself a pluralistic field of discussion, including ideas on ethics, justice, the correct path of governance in the interest of the people, and the necessity for those with public responsibility to maintain integrity and honesty in their behavior; these ideas are directly continuous with contemporary concerns regarding corruption, good governance, and serving the people. One can neither totally reject nor totally accept China’s long historical legacy. There are good things in the toolbox of history—useful knowledge, good ideas, and practices—and there are also bad things and "dross." However, if we apply the Marxist method of analysis, we can draw lessons from the past and the accumulated experience of the people and combine them with an analysis of today’s situation. This is the work of pioneering socialism with Chinese characteristics that has been ongoing since the founding of the CPC, and it must be carried forward through the "Two Combinations."
III. The Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation and its Impact on Human Civilization
Q: The Communist Party of China has proposed the "Chinese Dream" of achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. How do you view the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation? What does it mean in the history of human civilization?
A: The idea of "Great Rejuvenation" expresses the historical moment we are in: it is not only China reclaiming its role in global affairs from before the 19th-century Western imperialist invasions and destruction, but also a comprehensive restructuring of global geopolitical reality. With the end of the U.S.-led capitalist world system and the rise of an era of polycentric development, China plays a leading role but does not seek to replace the United States as a hegemonic power. This is entirely consistent with China’s positioning in an era as an important center of economic production and trade, yet China is completely devoid of that expansionist tendency to conquer other countries based on its own will and power. Rejuvenation brings a new prosperity to China—a prosperity built on the steady improvement of the lives of all people—and also forms a "common prosperity" by sharing new trade exchange networks and developing cultural and social links with countries around the world. At the same time, it drives the world from one dominated by a single great power toward a world where all nations and peoples can pursue their own social, collective, and individual interests.
Q: Along with the substantial increase in China's economic strength and the significant enhancement of its comprehensive national power, hostility toward China from some Western countries, represented by the United States, has been increasing. What is your understanding of this?
A: Since the end of the Second World War, and particularly since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the drastic changes in Eastern Europe, the United States has been the dominant force in the global capitalist system. The economic and political elites of the United States have enjoyed immense power and privilege and accumulated vast wealth by exploiting the working people and natural resources around the world. The United States has exerted every effort—with varying degrees of success—to make all other countries submit to an imperialist hegemonic system, extracting raw materials from other parts of the world for processing and manufacturing and exporting goods to global markets.
When President Nixon...
When he visited China in 1972 and inaugurated a new period in relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China, he opened an era in which the Western world hoped to re-incorporate China into the system of imperialist hegemony through trade. Western society hoped to use trade and investment to re-implant capitalism into China. When China embarked on the path of reform and opening up starting in 1978, many in the West believed this confirmed that China could be integrated into the global capitalist system. The American elite hoped for a "color revolution" [7] in China to subvert the socialist regime led by the Communist Party of China, or to restructure the regime into a form more suited to imperialist rule.
For a period, particularly in the 1990s and the first decade of the 21st century, China followed a path of "hiding one's brightness and nourishing obscurity" [8]. To achieve the goals of using market mechanisms to develop the productive economy and absorbing capital, technology, and other information useful for economic development, Chinese leaders maintained a low-profile political stance, opening up to the United States and other Western countries, and joining the World Trade Organization and other international institutions. During this period, the American elite firmly believed that China's further subordination to the global capitalist system was inevitable.
As China achieved increasing success in pursuing its reform objectives, as the living and material conditions of the Chinese people continuously improved, and as China's capacity for innovation and creative development grew stronger, China's socialist system enabled it to cope with the impact of the 2008 global financial crisis and save millions of lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the Chinese people became more confident in international affairs. China has become more proactive in handling relations with other countries, more explicit in its commitment to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and more dedicated to fulfilling its original aspiration and founding mission.
When the American elite realized that China was committed to following its own path of development and that China would never become a vassal of the global capitalist system, they adopted a hostile attitude toward China. Fearing the loss of long-held power and privilege, while facing their own economic decline and increasing political dysfunction, successive U.S. administrations have made escalating efforts to undermine China's development, isolate and demonize China, and cling to the illusion of maintaining their hegemony. First came the "Pivot to Asia" strategy proposed under President Obama, then the China-U.S. trade friction [9] initiated by the Trump administration, and now the reckless and irresponsible acts of provocation and fear-mongering by the Biden administration, which will have devastating effects on everyone involved, especially on ordinary working people in the United States. Attempting to prevent China from re-emerging as a major participant in global affairs is foolish and objectively contrary to the genuine interests of the people of the United States and the West.
Q: How do you understand the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity proposed by the Communist Party of China? What impact will they have on the development of human civilization?
A: The Belt and Road Initiative is perhaps the most prominent component of China's comprehensive effort to develop new mechanisms for trade, exchange, investment, and communication between nations, aimed at raising people's standards of living and pursuing their own paths of economic development without having to submit to the U.S.-led global capitalist system. The BRI evokes the imagery of the ancient "Silk Road"—which for centuries linked China with Eurasia and the Indian Ocean region, including East Africa, through networks of goods and ideas exchanged over land and sea routes. By investing in infrastructure such as ports, pipelines, airports, and railways, as well as productive economic facilities, communication facilities, hospitals, and schools, the BRI aims to establish mutually beneficial relations with countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe.
Due to the suppression and exclusion by the U.S. and the West, China is currently committed to establishing international trade exchange and settlement mechanisms independent of existing Western-centric institutions (such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund). Institutions like the World Bank and the IMF are often merely tools for Western capitalist firms to profit in less developed regions of the world. As a medium for international transactions, the dominance of the U.S. dollar grants the U.S. government the ability to develop its devastating regime of sanctions, which only punish ordinary people in countries that refuse to submit to the United States.
All these initiatives seek to promote the establishment of mutually beneficial relations between nations; in other words, they seek a future of common prosperity among different countries. These are not charitable donations or philanthropy. These plans will benefit China and the vast Third World, helping China and Third World countries improve their people's lives and continue moving toward their own futures. However, this depends on the growth and development of the many other countries cooperating with China. This is not a system of extracting wealth for the benefit of only one party, but rather the establishment of a relationship of common development. This effort is deeply rooted in China's fine traditional culture [10] and also in the modern idea of international proletarian solidarity.
(Interviewer: Zhao Dingqi) Source: World Socialism Studies, No. 9, 2023 Editor: Huihui