Professor Michael Brie from Germany Visits the School of Marxism for Academic Exchange

On the morning of October 15, 2025, Professor Michael Brie, a member of the Advisory Board of the Left Party in Germany and former senior researcher at the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung ^[1], visited the Institute of Marxism Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). He engaged in academic exchange on the topic of "Rethinking the Concept of Socialism: The Era of China's Rise and the Crisis of Western Civilization." The meeting was chaired by Professor Yu Bin, Director of the Department of Foreign Marxist Studies at the Institute of Marxism Studies. Professor Yuan Xiuli, Director of the Department of International Communist Movement Studies, Deputy Director Liu Haixia, and relevant researchers participated in the session.

Beginning with a tracing of the essence of liberalism, Professor Brie examined the causes of the current crisis of Western civilization, the dilemma facing left-liberalism in developed countries, and the misunderstandings surrounding the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. He pointed out that left-liberalism has misled leftist forces into neglecting innovations within the socialist system, thereby becoming an ideological accomplice to Western stances toward China. In reality, China's practice demonstrates that, under the leadership of the Communist Party, China has integrated market mechanisms into the socialist framework through institutional innovation. This approach has both unleashed the vitality of capital and restrained its destructive tendencies. This exploration provides the Global South ^[2] with a new alternative distinct from the Western model.

The participating scholars engaged in an in-depth and spirited discussion with Professor Brie on the lecture’s themes, including the thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics, the crisis of Western civilization, and left-liberalism.

(Contributed by Wang Xiaohong with photography)