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Concept
China's peaceful rise
Summary
"China's peaceful rise", sometimes referred to as "China's peaceful development", was an official policy and political slogan in China under former General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Hu Jintao which sought to assure the international community that China's growing political, economic, and military power would not pose a threat to international peace and security.
Originally formulated by Zheng Bijian as part of a Ministry of State Security (MSS) influence operation, the term characterized China as a responsible world leader that avoids unnecessary international confrontation, emphasizes soft power, and vows that China is committed to its own internal issues and improving the welfare of its own people before interfering in world affairs. Furthermore, it sought to rebut the "China threat theory" and reestablish the view of China as a non-threatening world power, as historically Chinese empires were regarded as less aggressive.
Among Chinese authorities as well as academics, there was disagreement about the term—particularly a concern that the word 'rise' might fuel perceptions that China was a threat to the current status quo. Therefore, since 2004, the term "China's peaceful development" has been used by the Chinese leadership.
Under Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping, China has been increasingly adopting a more aggressive and nationalistic approach to both domestic and foreign policy, with its style of diplomacy commonly dubbed as wolf warrior diplomacy.
Many of the ideas behind the effort to promote the concept of the peaceful rise of the PRC came from the new security concept, which was formulated by think tanks in the PRC in the mid-1990s. During this time period, Chinese leaders became more careful with China's international image in the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre, particularly American views of China's growing role internationally.
The term itself was used in a speech given by the former Vice Principal of the Central Party School, Zheng Bijian, in late 2003 during the Boao Forum for Asia.
Official source
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