Wu Zhongmin: On the Great Significance of the Concept of a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind for Global Modernization
Unlike in the past, the entire world is increasingly becoming a community with a shared future in which all countries grow intertwined in their interests. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "The world today is a community with a shared future where everyone shares in both honor and loss." Looking further, the healthy advancement and structural upgrading of world modernization increasingly depend on the development of a community with a shared future for humanity. In a certain sense, without the development of a community with a shared future for humanity, world modernization will have no future, and human society as a whole will have no prospects.
Since the beginning of reform and opening up, as the practice of modernization has continuously deepened and people's level of cognition regarding modernization has steadily risen, China has gradually formed the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity. This is a major original contribution made by China to world modernization. It is noteworthy that the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity is not a simple major issue limited merely to the diplomatic level between nations; rather, it is a major issue concerning the transformation of entire human society today—that is, how world modernization can advance as an integrated whole. The concept of a community with a shared future for humanity both conforms to the basic laws of human social development revealed by historical materialism and aligns with the fundamental developmental trends of world modernization. It can be said that under new historical conditions, the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity deepens and enriches the Marxist international outlook. It fundamentally brings an end to the "law of the jungle" of colonialism, Cold War confrontation, and other types of zero-sum games that once prevailed in the world, replacing them with the basic concept of international engagement characterized by win-win cooperation and mutual benefit, along with corresponding basic rules. Because the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity conforms to the concept of justice in modern society, the basic trends of human historical development, and the fundamental interests of all countries, it will—given time and the advancement of modernization in individual countries and the world at large—inevitably be recognized by an increasing number of nations pursuing modernization. Consequently, it will increasingly demonstrate its indispensable and significant role in promoting the development of human society and the sustainable and healthy advancement of world modernization.
I. Why the Concept of a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity is Viable
In 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity; subsequently, the basic content of this concept has been continuously enriched and developed. The so-called community with a shared future for humanity primarily refers to the idea that, against the backdrop of globalization, all countries should "promote the common values of humanity—peace, development, equity, justice, democracy, and freedom." Based on the reality that the fundamental interests of all countries are intertwined, and taking win-win cooperation as the basic orientation, openness and inclusiveness as the basic attitude, and multilateralism and peaceful development as the basic path, countries should gradually promote benign interaction and common development while pursuing their own interests, thereby realizing the vision of common prosperity for all nations. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, "A community with a shared future for humanity, as the name implies, means that the future and destiny of every nation and every country are closely linked. We should stick together through thick and thin, share honor and disgrace, and strive to build the planet where we were born and raised into a harmonious big family, turning the aspiration of people around the world for a better life into reality."
The concept of a community with a shared future for humanity possesses solid historical and realistic foundations and can actively adapt to the grand era of world modernization.
First, it can actively adapt to the trend of the times characterized by economic globalization. The basic principles of historical materialism reveal the most fundamental law of human social development: "Economic movement is the most powerful, the most primordial, and the most decisive." The development of the modern economy and the corresponding economic globalization are the fundamental reasons for the formation of the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Viewed from the heights of human historical development, the economic base of traditional societies, which lasted for thousands of years, was a sequestered and isolated agricultural economy—that is, a natural economy. In stark contrast, the economic base of modern society is the modern economy. Modern large-scale industry and the market economy are the standard configurations of a modern economy. With the rise and development of modern large-scale industry and the market economy, economic globalization has become an inevitable historical trend. As Marx and Engels pointed out: "In this way, large-scale industry has linked all the peoples of the earth together, has pooled all the small local markets into a world market."
Importantly, unlike in the past, under the grand era of economic globalization jointly driven by modern large-scale industry and the market economy, although individual countries remain the basic units of their own survival and development, they are increasingly unable to do without mutual cooperation and interdependence. "In place of the old local and national seclusion and self-sufficiency, we have intercourse in every direction, universal inter-dependence of nations. And as in material, so also in intellectual production." The deepening of economic globalization means that the inseparable economic activities between countries are increasing daily, to the extent that any country that detaches itself from globalization will be unable to carry out its own modernization and will ultimately have no future prospects. Under such circumstances, the gradual formation of the concept of an "integrated world" and the corresponding "community with a shared future for humanity" undoubtedly becomes a historical necessity, and the significant positive role of this concept in promoting world modernization will inevitably become more prominent. "As a concept, globalization refers both to the compression of the world and the intensification of consciousness of the world as a whole." Thus, human society has increasingly become a community with a shared future "organically" composed of various countries, and the degree to which countries "share a common destiny" or are "intertwined in their interests" is constantly increasing. In particular, the rise and development of the Internet has boosted the process of globalization. "The Internet has truly turned the world into a global village, making the international community increasingly a community with a shared future in which you are in me and I am in you [1]." The development and popularization of the Internet have significantly expanded and enhanced the space and convenience of economic exchange between countries, forming an economic interconnectedness where interests are deeply embedded in one another. Furthermore, the popularization of the Internet has significantly enhanced the understanding and empathy of the people of one country for what is happening in others.
Second, it can actively adapt to the practical need for all countries to jointly respond to social risks. Compared to traditional agricultural society, social risk factors in modern industrial society show a trend of steady increase. In traditional agricultural societies based on a farming economy, social risks existed, but due to the relative simplicity and stability of farming activities, the types of social risks generated were relatively few and the probability of occurrence was relatively low. Modern society is completely different. Modern society is full of uncertainty. Marx and Engels pointed out that under modern social conditions, there is "constant revolutionising of production, uninterrupted disturbance of all social conditions, everlasting uncertainty and agitation." Under the influence of modern large-scale industry and the market economy, vast amounts of social wealth are created. To maintain this trend of wealth creation, various production links have become increasingly complex, specialized, and integrated; meanwhile, with the continuous transformation of science and technology, production systems are constantly upgrading and iterating. Economic globalization has made the world's economic system even more complex. "Contemporary globalization means global complexity and density, including a considerable increase in local complexity and density." Within such an extremely complex and constantly changing economic system, uncertainty abounds. If any single link changes, it will to varying degrees lead to the inadequacy of the existing production and operation system, thereby creating a large number of social risks. In addition to economic risk factors, many other types of risk factors have also become a normal presence in today's world. All of these factors make modern society a risk-filled society. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Humanity is also in an era where challenges emerge one after another and risks are increasing daily." Moreover, under the conditions of deepening globalization and the increasing convenience of transportation and information dissemination, the social risks of various countries exhibit a pattern of rapid expansion and wide transmission, while also showing a linked trend of mutual deepening and aggravation.
No single country can complete the effective response to these increasingly heavy globalized risks alone; they must rely on the joint action of all countries. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "No country can alone deal with the various challenges facing humanity." From this, the indispensable and significant meaning of a community with a shared future for humanity is fully revealed.
Third, it can actively adapt to the historical trend of harmonious coexistence between humanity and the ecological environment. The ecological environment is the most fundamental condition for the survival and development of human society. Marx pointed out: "Nature, in so far as it is not the human body, is man's inorganic body. Man lives from nature." Therefore, for the survival and development of human society itself, humanity must protect the ecological environment.
However, in the early stages of modernization, people did not recognize this well. At that time, with the emergence of large-scale industry, human productive capacity achieved unprecedented liberation and development. "The bourgeoisie, during its rule of scarce one hundred years, has created more massive and more colossal productive forces than have all preceding generations together." "What earlier century had even a presentiment that such productive forces slumbered in the lap of social labour?" Outwardly, relying on the immense productive forces of large-scale industry, human society's ability to transform the world achieved unprecedented historical progress. But at the same time, due to a lack of reverence for and knowledge of nature, people at that time acted in violation of natural laws, arbitrarily "remaking heaven and earth [2]," which led to serious consequences. As Engels pointed out, "For each such victory nature takes its revenge on us. Each victory, it is true, in the first place brings about the results we expected, but in the second and third places it has quite different, unforeseen effects which only too often cancel the first." Furthermore, at that time, capital possessed a powerful influence that could almost control the entire society. According to its own nature of infinite self-valorization, capital often ignored the public interest and expanded arbitrarily, inevitably destroying the harmony between humanity and nature. "Capital, due to its 'utility principle,' necessarily views and understands nature in the sense of usefulness and makes it an instrument; capital, due to its 'valorization principle,' determines that its utilization and destruction of nature are endless." Consequently, the ecological environment upon which human society relies for survival and development was seriously damaged. Some scholars have pointed out: "Since 1750, humans have burned fossil fuels, emitting 100 billion tons of carbon into the atmosphere."
Clearly, faced with such increasingly serious ecological destruction, no single country can respond effectively on its own. The problem of ecological destruction is a cross-border issue that harms the vital interests of every country. This reminds people that regarding ecological issues, all countries are a community with a shared future. Only by taking collective action based on the concept of such a community can countries effectively address ecological environment issues.
Since the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity can actively adapt to the great historical trend of economic globalization, the need for all countries to jointly respond to social risks, and the common demand for all countries to jointly address ecological environment issues, then this concept can be established and exert a positive and significant influence on world modernization.
II. The Concept of a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity Can Effectively Promote World Modernization
Since the modernization of the world is jointly participated in and promoted by independent and equal countries, and since all countries together constitute the subjects of world modernization, under such a grand era, the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity will inevitably become a necessary prerequisite for all countries to carry out modernization. This being the case, once all countries identify with this concept and actively promote its growth, it will benefit the advancement of world modernization; conversely, once some countries do not identify with this concept and hinder its growth, it will inevitably harm the progress of world modernization.
Generally speaking, whether the modernization of the world can be advanced in a sustainable and healthy manner depends crucially on how it specifically addresses several major issues: the status of advancing world economic modernization, the status of advancing world modernization in a balanced manner, the status of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature, and the status of a just and reasonable international order necessary for world modernization. All of these are closely linked to the growth of the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity and its corresponding implementation.
First, the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity helps promote the construction of world economic modernization.
World economic modernization is undoubtedly the cornerstone for advancing the overall modernization of the world. Economic modernization provides a solid material foundation for the modernization of the world as a whole. Without economic modernization, it would be impossible to build modernization in other aspects. The vision of a community with a shared future for humanity is precisely what helps the sustainable and healthy advancement of world economic modernization.
The vision of a community with a shared future for humanity helps give full play to the role of the global market, facilitates the free flow of production factors from various countries on a global scale, and boosts the in-depth development of economic globalization. Modern large-scale industry and the market economy are the standard configurations of a modern economy. The development of a modern economy increasingly relies on the effective allocation of production factors from various countries through their free flow worldwide. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out, "Theory and practice have both proved that market allocation of resources is the most efficient form. The market determining the allocation of resources is a general law of the market economy; in essence, a market economy is an economy where the market determines the allocation of resources." The vision of a community with a shared future for humanity stands at the height of a shared destiny where all countries share weal and woe, emphasizing win-win cooperation and advocating for the effective allocation of production factors through free flow worldwide. "In today’s world, the people of all countries are a community with a shared future sharing weal and woe. Markets, funds, resources, information, and talents are all highly globalized; only when the world develops can individual countries develop; only when individual countries develop can the world develop." This vision and its corresponding practices help relevant countries reduce production costs and improve production efficiency through fair competition, thereby enabling countries to form an effective economic division of labor on a global scale and develop their respective comparative advantages. "A nation (or an individual) can raise its standard of living and real income by specializing in the production of those goods in which it has the highest productivity." "In today's world of complex and large-scale production techniques, this kind of specialization is, of course, a tendency." Looking further, the formation of comparative economic advantages helps improve the production efficiency and economic development levels of individual countries, which in turn helps improve the production efficiency of the entire world and promotes the development of modern world productive forces.
The vision of a community with a shared future for humanity also helps countries form positive economic interactions and prevents or weakens negative economic interactions and zero-sum games between them. Undoubtedly, against the background of economic globalization, fierce economic competition will inevitably arise among all nations. It is worth noting that not all competitive behaviors are positive or fair. To ensure the fairness of economic competition worldwide, the international community has established international organizations such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and formulated corresponding systems of rules to regulate the market competition behavior of member states and handle economic disputes. Nevertheless, when interacting with others, some countries rely on their own strong economic and capital power, adhere to the "law of the jungle" [3] and the philosophy of "the weak are the prey of the strong," and arbitrarily damage the legitimate economic interests of other countries to expand their own. The negative effect of such practices on world economic modernization is that they suppress and hinder the development of the productive potential and creativity of many countries, preventing world economic modernization from advancing as it should. This negative impact is particularly significant for developing countries with lower levels of development. "If major economies 'slam on the brakes' or make 'sudden U-turns' in their monetary policies, it will produce serious negative spillover effects, posing challenges to world economic and financial stability, and developing countries will be the first to bear the brunt."
By contrast, the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity emphasizes that economic exchanges between countries should follow market economic principles of fair competition, discarding the previous "law of the jungle" rules of engagement or other types of zero-sum games, and achieving positive interaction of economic interests through mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. This vision and its corresponding practices not only help fully exploit the potential of every country's economic modernization but also effectively promote the integrated development of world modernization. For example, China has adopted this approach; although it has suffered unprincipled suppression and containment by the United States in recent years, it has still demonstrated strong resilience and development momentum. Precisely because China bases itself on the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity, upholds the basic principles of fair competition and win-win cooperation globally, actively promotes its economic exchanges with other countries, and actively defends the WTO rule system, its economy has achieved major accomplishments in sustainable and healthy development.
From 2018 to 2023, China's GDP grew from 91.9 trillion RMB to 126.1 trillion RMB; China's total import and export of goods grew from 4.62 trillion USD to 5.94 trillion USD. Simultaneously, this approach has also promoted the economic modernization of many countries with close economic ties to China, such as those along the "Belt and Road," thereby promoting the development of world modernization. In other words, the vision and behavior of a community with a shared future for humanity allow the modernization of many countries to develop in sync with world modernization, boosting common prosperity for all nations. This situation demonstrates the great vitality of the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Second, the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity helps the balanced advancement of world modernization.
The balanced advancement of world modernization is a matter of critical importance. It is not only a major issue concerning how many countries and people in human society can benefit from modernization, and to what extent the basic vision of "putting people first" can be realized worldwide, but also a major issue concerning whether each country’s modernization can achieve "normal" development and to what extent its potential can be activated and released. In a word, whether it can be advanced in a balanced manner is a major issue concerning whether world modernization can be advanced in a sustainable and healthy way.
After World War II, as a large number of former colonial and semi-colonial countries achieved national independence and the process of economic globalization advanced rapidly, most developing countries began their own modernization construction, causing a massive change in the world map of modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out, "The collective rise of emerging market countries and developing countries, represented by the BRICS countries, is fundamentally changing the world map. Over the past 20 years, emerging market countries and developing countries have contributed as much as 80% to world economic growth, and their share of global GDP has increased from 24% to more than 40% in the past 40 years." This is a major event in the process of world modernization and a major step forward for human society. The significance of this event lies not only in the change of the modernization map but also in the end of the situation where Western developed countries dominated world modernization for many years. As their own modernization develops, many developing countries that were once colonies or semi-colonies have begun to play important roles in world modernization and have gradually gained a certain "discourse power" [4]. "The rise of China, India, Brazil, South Korea, and many other developing countries represents more than just a massive shift in the balance of economic power; it also contains broader implications. Economic prosperity helps these countries boost their self-confidence and encourages them to display their political and cultural values on a wider stage."
However, it must be seen that while many developing countries have made important progress in modernization and the modernization map has changed significantly, the problem of imbalanced development in the world modernization process has not been properly resolved. Furthermore, this phenomenon of imbalance has become quite obvious in recent years.
Clearly, only through the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity and corresponding actions can the phenomenon of imbalanced advancement in world modernization be effectively resolved or at least alleviated. If we base ourselves on this vision and regard all countries as members of a community with a shared future—and equal members at that—then all countries will inevitably base themselves on the idea of developing together with others and interact through mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. Furthermore, developed countries should provide necessary support within their capacity to developing countries to boost the balanced advancement of world modernization. It is an obvious fact that the continuous improvement of the modernization level of developing countries contributes to the overall security and integrated advancement of world modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping noted, "It should be recognized that if developing countries develop, there will be a more solid foundation for the prosperity and stability of the entire world, and developed countries will also benefit from it. The international community should take a long-term view, fulfill its commitments, provide necessary support for the development of developing countries, safeguard their legitimate development rights and interests, and promote equality of rights, opportunities, and rules, so that people of all countries can share in development opportunities and results."
Third, the vision of a community with a shared future for humanity helps the formation of a state of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.
The ecological environment is the foundational condition for the healthy and sustainable advancement of world modernization. "Only by following the laws of nature can humanity effectively prevent detours in the development and utilization of nature. Damage to nature will eventually harm humanity itself; this is an irresistible law." The increasing destruction of the ecological environment is not only a problem seriously affecting the modernization construction of individual countries but also a major, unavoidable issue with increasingly cross-border negative impacts. At the same time, it must be seen that in addressing the issue of ecological destruction, it is difficult for any single country to cope alone, nor can any country remain aloof or "care only for itself" [5]. Therefore, the joint efforts and close cooperation of all countries are required. Clearly, on such a major issue, the common interests among countries are relatively more obvious; thus, compared to other issues, it is relatively easier for countries to form a certain consensus on ecological issues and take relatively consistent actions to varying degrees.
Starting in the 1970s, marked by the discussion on sustainable development triggered by the Club of Rome, a non-governmental academic group, the international community began to gradually attach importance to ecological issues. In the 1990s, the United Nations formally intervened in the protection of the ecological environment. In 1992, the UN adopted the "United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change" (UNFCCC), signed by heads of government and possessing a certain level of binding force for participating countries. Subsequently, a series of supplementary agreements were passed for specific implementation, such as the Kyoto Protocol, the Copenhagen Accord, and the Paris Agreement. It can be said that, with international agreements like the UNFCCC acting as constraints and incentives, most countries have participated to varying degrees in the major task of ecological governance, leading to widespread attention and various degrees of improvement in world ecological issues. Consequently, a community of shared future for the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature has begun to emerge.
However, the degree to which countries participate in the UNFCCC and fulfill their relevant commitments is inconsistent, and the overall intensity is still insufficient. The United States has twice withdrawn from this convention out of its own narrow interests. In the long run, these behaviors have negatively affected the advancement of the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity characterized by the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature, which would have benefited all nations.
In the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity regarding the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature, China can be said to be the most responsible, credit-worthy, and invested major country. From a cognitive dimension, China views the construction of modern ecological civilization from the heights of a community with a shared future for humanity. From the dimension of the logic of action, China's construction of ecological civilization demonstrates a strong practical quality.
Since 2012, China has incorporated ecological construction as one of the "Five Tasks" [6] of Chinese-path modernization. It has formulated short-, medium-, and long-term action plans, implemented them through the state's powerful mobilization and organizational capacities, and employed the strictest and most rigorous rule of law to protect the ecological environment. Thanks to scientific cognition and high efficiency in action, China's governance of the ecological environment has achieved immense success recognized by the world. It can be said that, from a global perspective, China has gradually transformed from a "follower" to a "leader" in ecological environmental governance.
Fourth, the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity helps to form a just, reasonable, and secure international order.
It must be recognized that the sustainable and healthy promotion of the modernization of the world economy, the balanced advancement of world modernization, and the formation of a state of symbiosis between humanity and nature all require the guarantee of a corresponding just and reasonable international order—and the resulting state of peace—built upon the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity. Without a basic state of peace in the world, the normal modernization efforts of any single country, as well as world modernization as a whole, are out of the question.
Although the existing international order appears to have many problems, even serious ones that have affected global peace, it must be observed that the increasing and expanding element of fairness within the international order has already become a historical trend. Historically, along with the progress of modern human civilization and the emergence and universalization of the concepts of freedom, equality, and justice in the modern sense, the elimination of national oppression long ago became a historical necessity. Engels pointed out that "the removal of national oppression is the basic condition of all healthy and free development." Every country possesses equal sovereignty and equal rights to development, which no country can deprive them of for any reason. From the dimension of the international order, for several hundred years—particularly from the end of the Second World War to the present—the consciousness of national equality and state sovereignty has gradually formed globally and become deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
First, chronologically, from the 17th century to the present, national independence activities against oppression and enslavement have never ceased as a historical trend and have continued to push forward. Second, geographically, the consciousness of state sovereignty and national self-determination has gradually expanded to a broader range, even to the entire world. Marked by the 17th-century Peace of Westphalia, some European countries acquired, to a certain extent, an independent consciousness of state sovereignty and a corresponding system of rules. However, this situation only involved a small number of countries. Subsequent national liberation movements, such as the American War of Independence and the Latin American wars of independence, began to involve more countries. In particular, the national liberation movements that rose after the end of the Second World War allowed more than a hundred countries to gain independence, and the original colonial system was completely dismantled. Third, in terms of content, the demands for national equality and state sovereignty consciousness have become increasingly profound and rich; their extension is constantly expanding from the respect for state sovereignty and territorial integrity to independent economic development, multilateralism, cultural inclusivity, and opposition to racial discrimination.
Regarding this historical trajectory of progress in the international order, General Secretary Xi Jinping provided this precise summary: "Looking back at modern history, establishing a just and reasonable international order has been the goal humanity has pursued unremittingly. From the principles of equality and sovereignty established by the Peace of Westphalia more than 360 years ago, to the international humanitarian spirit established by the Geneva Convention more than 150 years ago; from the four purposes and seven principles clarified by the UN Charter more than 70 years ago, to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence advocated by the Bandung Conference more than 60 years ago, the evolution of international relations has accumulated a series of universally recognized principles. These principles should become the basic compliance for building a community with a shared future for humanity."
Clearly, the principles of national equality and sovereignty, the spirit of international humanitarianism, the basic purposes and principles of the United Nations, and the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence are the foundational components of the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity. At the same time, it should be seen that the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity is a further refinement, deepening, and upgrading of these aforementioned foundational components. The reason is simple: if the aforementioned purposes and principles emphasized the maintenance of state sovereignty, equality, and peaceful coexistence through each country restraining its own behavior—and thus represented a pursuit of the "coexistence" of various countries in a "passive" sense—then the community with a shared future for humanity emphasizes the active pursuit of the goal of "common prosperity" in an "active" sense. The concept of a community with a shared future for humanity is based on the idea of a shared destiny where we go through thick and thin together, win-win cooperation, and mutual benefit. It uses corresponding behaviors to realize a convergence of the interests of various countries, eliminating fierce confrontations between nations, especially between major powers. Through necessary cooperation, it jointly addresses various world-wide risks that no single country can handle alone. All of this helps to achieve the active "common development" and "common prosperity" of all countries in an "active" sense. All of this will undoubtedly contribute to the formation of a just and reasonable international order and a state of world peace, thereby providing the necessary guarantee for the sustainable and healthy promotion of world modernization.
III. Actively Promoting the Construction of a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity
Since the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity has an indispensable and significant role in promoting world modernization and is conducive to the modernization efforts of all countries, every country should naturally identify with this concept and jointly promote the sustainable and healthy development of world modernization. Otherwise, it will not only have a serious negative impact on their own modernization but also adversely affect the smooth advancement of the global modernization process.
Regarding the effective promotion of building a community with a shared future for humanity, all countries should focus on doing at least the following.
First, prepare psychologically for a long-term effort.
Undoubtedly, the formation and development of a community with a shared future for humanity is where the general trend of the world lies, and the concept represents the correct direction for the progression of human history. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The historical trend of peace, development, cooperation, and win-win results is unstoppable. The aspirations of the people and the general trend of the times determine that the future of humanity will ultimately be bright." Correspondingly, only based on the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity can world modernization be promoted sustainably and healthily.
Although the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity represents the general trend of human historical development, we must simultaneously see the other side of the issue: the formation of a community with a shared future for humanity will undergo a long and arduous historical process. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must fully estimate the complexity of the evolution of the international landscape," "fully estimate the sharpness of international contradictions and struggles," and "promoting the noble cause of human peace and development remains a long and heavy task."
The unfavorable factors affecting the formation of a community with a shared future for humanity are diverse. Among them, several factors are particularly prominent. First, there is no unified "government" institution in the international community that can be jointly recognized by all countries, similar to what exists within a nation. Although many international organizations exist, in many cases, they lack the "authoritative" enforcement power that national government agencies possess over their respective countries. Consequently, countries can often evade the constraints of international organizations to act according to their specific interest demands. In such circumstances, some countries with stronger economic and military power—especially certain developed hegemonic countries—are accustomed to handling international contradictions and disputes according to their long-standing unjust methods of bullying the weak to expand their own private interests. Objectively, this situation undoubtedly hinders the formation of an integrated community with a shared future for humanity. For example, the United States often utilizes its strong dollar hegemony, technological monopoly, and military hegemony to treat other countries, even causing the emergence of "anti-globalization" countercurrents in international affairs in recent years. During certain periods, this situation will hinder the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Second, the mutual cultural adaptation and integration between different countries or ethnic groups require a long historical period. The traditional cultures of various countries or groups were formed over a long historical time and thus possess relatively strong and solid characteristics; moreover, some traditional cultures include certain deep-seated irrational components. If economic exchange and integration between countries are relatively easy, the difficulty of mutual cultural exchange and integration is much greater. In other words, countries or ethnic groups are relatively more likely to generate cultural resistance or even conflict. "Cognition based on cultural traditions is very difficult to change completely in a short time, and it is almost impossible to achieve convergence. This leads to extremely complex and diverse interest demands among different countries, which in turn causes the chain of interaction between nations to suddenly break under certain conditions." In the long run, this poses a negative impact on the formation of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Third, various disputes and contradictions between countries are often intricately intertwined. Once serious obstacles appear in the interactions between nations, they inevitably trigger contradictions and conflicts, hindering the formation and development of a community with a shared future for humanity. For example, globalization itself sometimes leads to a widening gap between the rich and the poor in various countries. "Globalization does not develop in a fair way, and the results it brings are by no means entirely benign." This phenomenon inevitably exacerbates certain contradictions and disputes between countries. Moreover, some underlying interest demands of certain countries may suddenly become prominent with the help of some unpredictable sudden economic or public crises, causing a "resurgence" or "countercurrent" of "de-globalization," which can seriously hinder the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity during certain periods. In short, the existence of the aforementioned circumstances will inevitably hinder the smooth growth of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Second, actively promote the construction of the entire community with a shared future for humanity through the construction of an economic community and the joint response to social risks.
For any country, economic interests are the most basic, fundamental, and long-term major matters. It must be admitted that the development of an economic community of shared future among countries is not a sufficient condition for the formation and development of an integrated community with a shared future for humanity; the degree of economic community development does not necessarily bring about a corresponding degree of development for the community with a shared future for humanity as a whole. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that in the context of economic globalization, the construction of an economic community of shared future among countries is the foundation for the integrated development of a community with a shared future for humanity, its necessary premise, and its most important promotional factor.
In the era of economic globalization, economic interactions between countries have led to a necessary division of labor and cooperation within a global scope, thereby facilitating the formation of a shared destiny where economic interests are intertwined. This makes it so that, to a large extent, no one can do without the other. This lays the necessary material foundation for the formation and development of an integrated community with a shared future for humanity. Not only that, but with the passage of time, the formation and development of an economic community of shared future, along with close economic division of labor and mutual benefit, will undoubtedly help countries increase mutual understanding and build trust. This serves as a foundation and platform for mutual trust in other non-economic aspects and for a multi-faceted consensus, including the gradual identification with common values. Furthermore, the deepening of economic ties and the subsequent rise in the degree of economic community also help to suppress historical regressions such as de-globalization and anti-globalization. Because the construction of an economic community of shared future has such significant foundational meaning for the integrated construction of a community with a shared future for humanity, all countries should take the construction of an economic community as a cornerstone to actively promote the building of the entire community with a shared future for humanity.
Furthermore, through the joint governance of shared social risks, all nations will deepen their consciousness of sharing weal and woe [10]. In the modernization process of every country, a multitude of social risks are inevitably encountered, including the nuclear threat, terrorism, financial crises, public health crises, refugees, humanitarian aid, the traps of artificial intelligence technology, and the destruction of the ecological environment. If these social risks are not effectively countered and governed—letting them instead accumulate over time and evolve autonomously—their destructive energy will grow increasingly large. Ultimately, they will inevitably form large-scale negative effects that cross national borders, resulting in serious or even irreparable destructive consequences for the modernization process of every involved nation or even all nations. Faced with a multitude of serious social risks, we must rely on effective cooperation between all nations; it is impossible for a single country to counter and govern them effectively on its own. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "In the era of economic globalization, the development of all countries is interlinked; they prosper or decline together. No country can stand alone [11]; coordinated cooperation is the inevitable choice." In the process of jointly responding to and governing a multitude of serious social risks, as each country increases its attention to and investment in these risks, they will—given enough time—certainly increase mutual understanding and the corresponding consciousness of "empathy," forming unique mechanisms for cooperation and assistance. These will undoubtedly become active growth points for the development of a community with a shared future for humanity.
Third, gradually improve international organizations based on the United Nations.
The world is composed of all nations together; the modernization of the world requires the cooperation of all nations, and the peaceful situation necessary for world modernization also relies on the cooperation of all nations. This cooperation cannot be separated from a certain international order.
Clearly, the international order necessary for cooperation between all nations must be constructed based on the concepts of fairness and justice. Looking further, in their mutual interactions, all nations must—based on the concepts of fairness and justice—eliminate the hegemonic practices of unilateralism where one country issues orders. Only by following multilateralism and the method of joint consultation by all nations can a just and reasonable international order be built. Today, with the weakening of American hegemonic power, the changing map of the modernized world, and the strengthening of the discourse power [12] of developing countries, the construction of a just and reasonable international order through the method of multilateral joint consultation has gradually begun to become a reality.
From a realistic perspective, multilateral joint consultation can only be effectively carried out by relying on an international organization such as the United Nations and by following the corresponding international law. After all, the United Nations is currently an international organization with significant influence and international credibility; it is familiar to and relatively recognized by all nations. No other institution can yet replace it. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "The UN Charter is the recognized basic norm for relations between states"; "There is only one system in the world, which is the international system with the United Nations at its core. There is only one order, which is the international order based on international law. There is only one set of rules, which are the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter." At the same time, it must be seen that the United Nations does, after all, have many shortcomings and needs improvement. The key to improvement lies, first, in emphasizing global governance, and second, in enhancing the discourse power of developing countries.