Sixty years ago China put forward its five principles of peaceful co-existence between all countries. Today, the calling still remains the major pillar of its foreign policy.[Special coverage]
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday urged Asian and African nations to carry forward the Bandung Spirit and work together to promote the building of a community of common destiny for all mankind.
Speaking at an Asian-African summit in Jakarta, Xi brought forth a three-point proposal on realizing that grand vision in line with the time-honored Bandung Spirit of solidarity, friendship and cooperation, which he said remains relevant and potent today.
Political experts, here in Iraq, see that China's move in 1955 was a monumental event in the history of international relations, which signaled the beginning of efforts by developing countries to safeguard their national independence and sovereignty and establish a new model of international relations.
"Today, 60 years after Bandung Conference, we find the spirit of the five principles of harmonious coexistence and mutual support submitted by China are still not outdated, but it seems more suitable for the current international situation," Ibrahim al-Ameri, a political analyst and lecturer of politics at Baghdad University told Xinhua.
"At the time of Bandung Conference, the Asian and African countries lack experience about how to tackle such relations, and because of the constraints put in the world which was monopolized by the bipolar structure at the time," Ameri explained.
In the post Cold War era, the world has been facing U.S. unilateralism that tries to impose its values on the international community. Ameri believes that adopting the five principles is essential to build respectable relations among the world countries.
"The principles would certainly yield great deal of cooperation and development and will maintain peace and stability by forging a tightly-knit community of common destiny among the world nations," Ameri said.
"Such new relations would produce workable and practical initiatives, and this is clear in the current China's initiative of Silk Road Economic Belt, and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road," Ameri said.
Sabah al-Sheikh, a professor in politics at Baghdad University, believes that the five principles and China's "Belt and Road" initiatives are great chance for Iraq to deal with terrorism and to rebuild its devastating economy.
Iraq has been facing the deadly threat of terrorism by the Islamic State (IS) militant group, which is also a challenge for world peace. Therefore, it is urgent for the international community to have a new approach of common security to handle spillover of any elements that could trigger instability and insecurity.
"The concept of common security would enhance common trust among the world countries through cooperation that would build peaceful atmosphere which is essential for any economic and social development in the world," Sheikh said.
Sheikh believes that the world kept on strengthening of military alliances usually targeted a specific third parties. Such alliances have caused growing tensions and have done nothing to bring peace and stability in the region and across the world.
"The five principles of cooperation would give a new concept of common security. We need to take the security concerns of all nations into account, respect the equal rights of all nations to participate in regional and global security affairs," Sheikh said.
"Global issues such as terrorism, energy and resource security, climate change, transnational crime, and major natural disasters have risen unprecedentedly. These problems could spill-over to every country in the world. Therefore, we need to establish a global cooperation network to address such global problems," he added.
Ameri cautioned that because of the continued unrest in the Middle East and the Arab region, it would be quite difficult for countries here to promote their infrastructure and attract foreign investment.
"My advice for the Iraqi government, and to the governments of the Arab region; it is for our benefit to consolidate cooperation among our governments by adopting the five principles in order to promote cooperation with neighbors and friendly countries and then to open the door wide to allow the Silk Road to pass through Arab lands," Ameri concluded.
Ameri said Iraq needs the world to help "address both the symptoms and the root causes of terrorism, extremism, and sectarianism in order to crack down on these activities."
Sheikh also said that Iraq is fighting terrorism on behalf of the world, and that the country needs the world's cooperation.
