How China-proposed Global Governance Initiative offers alternative to 'capricious bullying'

The Global Governance Initiative (GGI) is gaining international traction by positioning itself as a direct alternative to the "capricious and bullying" behavior of some major powers, according to a British expert.

The GGI, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping at a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Tianjin in September 2025, calls for joint efforts to build a more just and equitable global governance system.

The initiative advocates five major propositions: sovereign equality, international rule of law, multilateralism, a people-centered approach, and real actions.

Keith Bennett, vice chair of Britain's 48 Group Club and co-editor of Friends of Socialist China, said the GGI has an appeal because its message resonates with the Global South in particular.

"One of the reasons why it's welcomed by so many countries is that they see the contrast," Bennett told CGTN. "They see the very capricious and bullying way that another major power is behaving in the world."

"They see the way that some people talk about a rules-based international order where they make the rules and other people follow the orders," he said, adding that is a system stacked against the interests of the Global South.

Bennett said President Xi's proposal brings the ideas of democracy, equality of nations and respect for diverse civilizations, and integrates them into a proposal for global governance.

"The fundamental reason why the majority of countries in the world can support the GGI is because they see it is actually in their own interests, that it is fair and reasonable, and that it accords with the existing situation in the world and the needs of the times," he said.

At a year-end symposium, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called the GGI "a timely initiative that responds to the pressing needs of the world today."

The GGI has gained immediate endorsement and support from over 150 countries and international organizations, according to Wang.

GGI offers UN alignment

The GGI is seen as China's contribution to revitalizing the central position and leading role of the United Nations in the global governance system.

According to the Concept Paper on the Global Governance Initiative, released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, China will remain firm in safeguarding the international system with the UN at its core and the international order underpinned by international law, no matter how the international landscape changes.

In December, the Group of Friends of Global Governance was officially established at the UN headquarters in New York.

In a joint statement, the Group said its establishment marks a significant step in implementing the GGI, and provides an inclusive platform that draws on collective wisdom and mobilizes joint efforts for reforming and improving the global governance system.

Bennett said the GGI aligns squarely with the UN Charter.

"It's compatible with the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations. It's also compatible with the Charter of the United Nations, which comes out of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and tries to put international relations on a democratic basis," he said.

He said the initiative seeks to update the international governance system and ensure it remains relevant to today's world.

"This is not a proposal to throw the international system and the international order out of the window," said Bennett. "It's a proposal to bring it back to the center stage, and to update it and modernize it and apply it to the existing conditions."