Chinese Ceremonies Highlight Shifting World Power Picture
TRANSCEND MEMBERS, 8 Sep 2025
René Wadlow – TRANSCEND Media Service
4 Sep 2025 – Early September 2025 saw China at the seat of world politics as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) met in Tianjin followed by the ceremonies for the 80th anniversary of the end of the war in Asia was marked in Tienanmen Square in Beijing. Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif,
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were at one or both of these events along with lesser-known political authorities.
President Xi Jinping said at the ceremonies in Beijing “Common security can only be safeguarded when nations across the world treat each other as equals, live in harmony, and mutually support one another”. Nevertheless the “Tianjin Declaration” of the SCO highlighted the “fluid and chaotic global situation.”
The Russia-Ukraine armed conflict and that in the Gaza Strip seem to be no closer to a negotiated halt. U.S. policy led by President Donald Trump is unpredictable and inconsistent. The United Nations General Assembly will start soon in New York with many of the same issues on the agenda.
As peacebuilders, we must not expect that government leaders will bring us to a world of peace and harmony. The ceremonies in Beijing included a large number of marching soldiers as well as a massive display of up-to-date weapons. The European states are discussing increased spending on the military while cutting spending on meeting civilian human needs. Thus, we must increase our efforts to make non-governmental organizations and academic institutions strong agents of peacebuilding. The dangers facing us are real. Greater cooperation is needed. Increased training in non-violent action and conflict resolution should be undertaken. Our efforts on communication and reaching a wider number of readers must continue.
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René Wadlow is a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment. He is President of the Association of World Citizens, an international peace organization with consultative status with ECOSOC, the United Nations organ facilitating international cooperation and problem-solving in economic and social issues, and editor of Transnational Perspectives.
Tags: China, Cooperation, Erdogan, Japan, Multipolar World Order, New World Order, Occupation, SCO, Türkiye
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 8 Sep 2025.
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