Standing Together for Security, Joining Hands for a Shared Future

Currently, changes unseen in a century are unfolding at a faster pace. Geopolitical conflicts continue to flare up, traditional and non-traditional security risks are increasingly intertwined, and unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise. The global deficits in peace and security continue to widen, posing unprecedented and complex challenges to world peace and security. In response to the security dilemmas facing humanity, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Security Initiative (GSI), advocating a vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security. The Initiative offers China’s proposal for addressing global security challenges, improving global security governance and building a safer world.

Pursuing the Path to Common Security

At the heart of the Global Security Initiative is the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security. It recognizes that the security of all countries is interconnected and indivisible, and that the security of one country should not come at the expense of that of others.
The GSI calls for staying committed to respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries; abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter; taking the legitimate security concerns of all countries seriously; peacefully resolving differences and disputes between countries through dialogue and consultation; and maintaining security in both traditional and non-traditional domains.
The Global Security Initiative Concept Paper, released in February 2023, further identified 20 priorities of cooperation, covering areas such as the political settlement of hotspot issues, counterterrorism, cybersecurity, food security, climate change, and disaster prevention and reduction, providing practical pathways for countries to pursue security cooperation.
The Initiative goes beyond the outdated thinking of zero-sum games and bloc confrontation, and responds to the international community’s shared aspiration for universal security. It has received support and appreciation from more than 130 countries, regions and international organizations, and has been clearly incorporated into more than 140 bilateral and multilateral documents between China and other parties.

Sharing Responsibility for Security

The vitality of the Global Security Initiative lies in action. China is not only the proposer of the Initiative, but also a firm practitioner of it.
Since China began participating in United Nations peacekeeping operations in 1990, it has dispatched more than 50,000 peacekeepers. China is now the largest troop-contributing country among the permanent members of the UN Security Council and the second-largest financial contributor to UN peacekeeping. Generations of Chinese Blue Helmets have carried out missions ranging from security and protection to medical assistance, mine clearance and explosive ordnance disposal, earning wide recognition for their service.
Bangladesh has likewise made an outstanding contribution to UN peacekeeping. Over the years, Bangladeshi peacekeepers have served in peacekeeping missions across some 40 countries and have consistently ranked among the leading troop contributors to the United Nations. In the common endeavour to safeguard international peace and security, Chinese and Bangladeshi peacekeepers have served with dedication under the UN flag, demonstrating through concrete action the two countries’ firm commitment to multilateralism and the cause of international peace.
China has also actively built platforms for cooperation in the field of public security. In September 2026, the 2026 Conference of the Global Public Security Cooperation Forum (Lianyungang) was held in China. More than 2,100 representatives from 139 countries, regions and international organizations gathered under the theme of “Uniting to Advance Public Security Governance and Inject a Stabilizing Force into a Turbulent World.”
During the conference, the International Alliance Combating Telecom and Cyber Fraud was officially established, providing a new mechanism for countries to work together against transnational telecom and cyber fraud. China stands ready to deepen law enforcement and security cooperation with Bangladesh and other countries, jointly combat emerging forms of transnational crime, including telecom and cyber fraud, and translate the vision of common security into concrete action that safeguards world peace and stability and protects the well-being of people around the world.

Building a Stronger Foundation for Security

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s visit to China in 2026 provided new strategic guidance for China-Bangladesh security cooperation. In the Joint Communiqué issued during the visit, both sides agreed to elevate the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership to jointly build a China-Bangladesh community with a shared future in the new era. And the two sides also agreed to set up a mechanism for strategic dialogue between foreign ministers. At the same time, China and Bangladesh agreed to firmly safeguard the UN-centred international system, the international order underpinned by international law, and the basic norms governing international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
These important common understandings have laid a solid foundation for China and Bangladesh to strengthen strategic communication on security issues, deepen multilateral cooperation and further explore exchanges and cooperation in the defence field.
Peace must be safeguarded by all, and security can only be upheld through joint efforts. Looking ahead, China and Bangladesh can make full use of their strategic dialogue mechanisms to strengthen communication and coordination on international and regional security issues, jointly uphold multilateralism and the international rule of law within the UN framework, and expand practical cooperation in such areas as public security, disaster prevention and reduction, counterterrorism and the fight against transnational crime.
With the Global Security Initiative as an important platform for cooperation, the two sides can translate the important common understandings reached by their leaders into more tangible outcomes, and make greater contributions to peace and stability in South Asia and to lasting peace and security in the world.
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The writer is the Chargé d’Affaires, Embassy of China in Bangladesh