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Foster mutual understanding
About the Conference Series
As the conflict in Ukraine, the genocide in Palestine, and the recent attack on Iran make clear, the world is going through a dangerous period where ignoring international law has been normalised by the powerful, threatening to push the world towards large scale conflagration. While tensions simmer and nations engage in an arms race, can China as a superpower perform a balancing act to foster stability in an increasingly fractured world?
From facilitating dialogue in Africa and the Middle East to navigating great-power rivalries and engaging with its neighbours in the region to diplomatically resolve longstanding disagreements, China’s approach to peacebuilding and conflict management presents a critical test for its global leadership.
This conference delves into China’s nuanced strategy of balancing great power competition and regional conflicts through diplomacy, mediation, and economic cooperation. It will examine the reality that this is a new role and old powers will be unwilling to accommodate a new global player with a very different reading of history and approach to diplomacy and political system.
It will offer fresh, evidence-based perspectives on China’s approaches to managing conflicts, fostering partnerships, and promoting development, as well as examine whether these approaches serve as a force for de-escalation—or risk deepening divides. Join us as leading experts dissect whether China’s path to being a key global peace broker can be sustained and be a major contribution to the global good—or if the world is headed toward a new era of contested multipolarity.
China in the World Series
Part 1
One Belt One Road: What’s Next in the New Multi-Polar World Order?
China in the World Series
Part 2
Geopolitics & Conflicts: Is China’s Balancing Act a Global Good?
China in the World Series
Part 3
The Chinese Emphasis on Culture: Manifestation of Nationalism or a Return to Basics?
Speakers
A snapshot of our continually growing faculty, representing the best minds in business, economics, science, geopolitics, technology, policymaking, governance, and more.
Past Speakers
Conference Programme
Part 2
Geopolitics & Conflicts: Is China's Balancing Act a Global Good?
Time
Session
Time:
16:00 - 16:05
Session:
Time:
16:05 – 17:15
Session:
Panel 1
China's Rise as a Global Balancer: What Leadership Role Does It Seek?
As China’s influence expands, its conflict management strategies reflect a distinct blend of historical principles and pragmatic diplomacy. Rooted in traditions such as the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence” and Confucian emphasis on harmony, Beijing often opts for neutrality and mediation, brokering talks in regions like the Middle East and the Horn of Africa, rather than coercion or alignment.
This panel will examine how China designs and leverages this balancing act to position itself as a stabilising force: prioritising economic partnerships, developmental peace, and non-interventionist diplomacy over confrontation or bloc rivalry. In a world where U.S. dominance is waning and alternatives are being sought, does China’s role, and the model it offers, provide a viable template for global leadership and contribute to broader peace worldwide?
Areas of discussion will include:
Historical & Cultural Foundations: How do principles like “non-interference” and the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence” shape China’s approach to conflict management
Mediation Over Militarisation: Case studies of China’s neutral brokerage (e.g., Iran-Saudi reconciliation, Horn of Africa disputes) and how it contrasts with Western interventionism.
Development as Diplomacy: Why does China prioritise economic cooperation (e.g., BRI, RCEP) over ideological or military alliances?
Time:
17:15 – 18:30
Session:
Panel 2
Can China's Balancing Acts Stabilise a Fractured World?
China’s rise coincides with a world increasingly divided by great-power rivalry, the breakdown of international law, economic fragmentation, and the weakening and eroded trust in multilateral institutions. This panel assesses whether Beijing’s model—neutral mediation, development-focused partnerships such as the AIIB and BRICS, and technology diplomacy via the Digital Silk Road—can offer stability where Western approaches have struggled.
While Global Majority nations often welcome China’s emphasis on sovereignty and infrastructure-led growth, tensions persist: Can non-intervention truly resolve conflicts? Do China’s economic initiatives in other regions deliver sustainable development and peace, or do they risk reinforcing dependency or even creating conflict? And as U.S.-China tech decoupling accelerates, will the Digital Silk Road bridge divides or deepen them? Experts weigh the promises and pitfalls of China’s pragmatic balancing act.
Areas of discussion will include:
Mediation vs. Sanctions: Does China’s non-confrontational approach (e.g., abstaining from UN condemnations) resonate more effectively in conflict zones?
The AIIB & BRICS Effect: Can China’s development-focused institutions compete with Western-led frameworks like the World Bank?
Tech as Soft Power: How does the Digital Silk Road help, or hinder, China’s influence amid U.S. tech containment?
Time:
18:30 – 19:00
Session:
Global Dialogue
Partners
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global peace and diplomacy.
Gain insights into China’s evolving approach to conflict resolution, regional stability, and great-power dynamics.
More insight and resources
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