Concepts, Features and Practices of China’s Neighborhood Diplomacy in the New Era

Neighborhood diplomacy will be pursued as necessary conditions to achieve the “Two Centenary Goals” and realize the Chinese Dream of the national rejuvenation. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China （CPC）， China’s neighborhood diplomacy has adhered to theoretical innovation and put forward many original and contemporary concepts， reflecting the characteristics of the Marxist theories on international relations and enriching the substance of the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. In April 2025， General Secretary Xi Jinping made the remarks at a central conference on work related to neighboring countries， which was held in Beijing， and has called for building a community with a shared future with neighboring countries and striving to open new ground for China’s neighborhood work. Through further coordination and planning as well as constant exploration and innovation， China’s neighborhood diplomacy has scored historic achievements. It helps create a sound neighborhood environment for the Chinese modernization and contributes to common development in China’s neighborhood.

Important Concepts

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC， innovative thinking has been integrated into all aspects of the Party’s external work. China’s neighborhood diplomacy adheres to such theoretical innovation. The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has accurate observation of the development trend in the world and laws governing regional development and adheres to and develops Marxist theories on international relations in practice. A series of new concepts and propositions have been put forward from such perspectives as morality and ethics， consensus and values as well as goals and aspirations， which later become important components of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy and are exhibited in the following aspects.

Firstly， China upholds the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness in its neighborhood diplomacy. In October 2013， the CPC Central Committee held a symposium on relations with neighboring countries， the first time since the founding of the People’s Republic of China （PRC）. During the symposium， General Secretary Xi Jinping put forward the strategic goals， fundamental principles and overall layout of China’s neighborhood diplomacy， clarified the work ideas and implementation plans for solving major problems in neighborhood diplomacy and proposed the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness in neighborhood diplomacy for the first time. Together with the “policy of building friendship and partnership with its neighbors” and “fostering an amicable， secure and prosperous neighborhood”， the principle becomes essential values of China’s neighborhood diplomacy and charters the course forward for China’s diplomacy with neighboring countries.

China actively acts on the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness， and also turns it into a common principle and code of conduct to be followed by the regional countries. General Secretary Xi Jinping has elaborated on this principle on various other occasions， for instance at Boao Forum for Asia， emphasizing that China pursues friendship and partnership with its neighbors， enhances good neighborliness， deepens mutually beneficial cooperation and delivers more benefits to neighboring countries through its own development. The principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness has been included in the reports of the 19th and 20th National Congresses of the CPC. And deepening friendship， mutual trust and integration of interests with neighboring countries has become the Party’s work task. This principle is also listed in Chapter III of the Law on Foreign Relations of the People’s Republic of China， which was adopted at the Third Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress in 2023. This indicates that the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness has been uplifted from moral and ethical requirements to national-level legal norms and fully reflects China’s strong determination to achieve common development with neighboring countries.

Secondly， China carries forward the Asian values. In his written remarks delivered to an international symposium on China’s neighborhood diplomacy to commemorate the 10th anniversary of China’s principle in neighborhood diplomacy of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness， Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time put forward the “Asian values of peace， cooperation， inclusiveness and integration”. The central conference on work related to neighboring countries held in April 2025 proposed that the Asian values of peace， cooperation， openness and inclusiveness should be upheld as fundamental guiding principles， with the connotation of Asia values being further refined. These values epitomize the spirit， culture and wisdom of Asian countries， reflect the commonality of Asian civilization and serve as the value foundation for the collective identity of China and neighboring countries. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out that the people of various Asian countries should draw nourishment from their time-honored history and civilization， consolidate their collective recognition of Asian values， expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges， and develop sound public opinions of good neighborliness. With historical vision and perspective of civilization， General Secretary Xi Jinping analyzed the values shared by China and other Asian countries. Aiming at the future and shared peace and prosperity， he emphasized that Asia， with magnanimity， should be an inclusive and harmonious region. Asia should choose dialogue and cooperation over zero-sum games， openness and inclusiveness over a closed-door and exclusive approach， and exchanges and mutual learning over a sense of superiority. This is the only choice worthy of the broad-mindedness of Asians.

Asian values reflect the reality that China and other Asian countries share common values， highlight the interactive nature of China’s relationship with its neighboring countries and epitomize the regional countries’ collective recognition of Asian philosophy， culture and wisdom. This vision has received resonance from various Asian countries. In 2024， China issued joint statements respectively with Malaysia， Laos， and Indonesia， emphasizing the need to uphold the spirit of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence， jointly carry forward the Asian values centered on peace， cooperation， inclusiveness and integration， remain committed to the Asian development path featuring mutual benefits and open cooperation， advocate the Bandung spirit of solidarity， friendship and cooperation， and contribute to stability and progress in Asia.

Thirdly， China advances the building of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries. This vision answers the question of what kind of relationship a fast-growing China should build with its neighboring countries. It also exhibits China’s wish for mutual support and sound cooperation with neighboring countries， as well as reflects the aspiration of Chinese people and people of neighboring countries for shared prosperity and stability. Building a community with a shared future with neighboring countries， the ultimate goal of China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era， has become a crucial component of building a community with a shared future for mankind， bearing critical theoretical and far-reaching historical significance.

President Xi Jinping proposed the vision of a community with a shared future for the first time during his visit to Russia in March 2013. In the same year， he suggested during the Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization （SCO） that efforts should be made to build the SCO into “a community of shared future and integrated interests”. In his remarks to the Indonesian parliament， he proposed to “jointly build a China-ASEAN community with a shared future”. At a symposium on work related to neighboring countries， General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed for the first time to “let the awareness of a community with a shared future take deep roots in neighboring countries”. In 2014， General Secretary Xi Jinping officially proposed the vision of “a community with a shared future with neighboring countries at the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs. He pointed out that “Asia has the salient feature of diversity. Countries are different in sizes， wealth and strength， with distinctive history， cultural traditions and social systems as well as diversified security interests and concerns. As residents in this big family of Asia， with integrated interests and deep bond of friendship through weal and woe， we are becoming a community with a shared future that share mutual stakes”. General Secretary Xi Jinping also combined the building of a community of with a shared future for mankind and that of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries， believing that “to do well， Asia and the world could not do without each other”. He further emphasized that “we must follow the trend of our times and jointly build a regional order that is more favorable to Asia and the world. We should， through efforts towards such a community for Asia， promote a community of common interest for all mankind.” At the 2025 central conference on work related to neighboring countries， General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “China’s neighborhood is a crucial link in building a community with a shared future for humanity”.

Features and Characteristics

The theoretical innovation of China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era originates from the traditional Chinese Hehe culture and carries forward and further develops the policy of good-neighborliness that has long been adopted since the founding of the PRC. It is an innovative application of the Marxist concept of development that keeps pace with the times in China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era， showing enormous theoretical value and far-reaching historical significance.

Firstly， it is rooted in traditional Chinese Hehe culture. The philosophy of Hehe is a unique oriental wisdom of way of thinking and way of dealing with the world， woven in the history of thousands of years of Chinese civilization and becoming a spiritual gene of the Chinese nation. It is the source of the theoretical innovation of China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era. General Secretary Xi Jinping has interpreted the implication of “Hehe”. The first “He” of Hehe indicates harmony， peace， and balance. The second “He” indicates convergence， integration and cooperation. Such inclusiveness is reflected in the traditional thinking of valuing harmony and esteeming balance， being understanding and open-minded， embracing the world through virtue， and living in harmony without uniformity. This is a cultural ideal that the Chinese nation pursues. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “the Chinese nation always loves harmony. As an important part of Chinese culture， the concept of harmony has a long history and strong appeal. We believe in unity between man and nature， peace among countries， the approach of ‘agree to disagree’ and the good nature of people.” By applying the philosophy of “Hehe” from Chinese culture to the neighborhood diplomacy， General Secretary Xi Jinping innovatively put forward a host of critical propositions， which form the concept of relationship with neighboring countries with characteristics of the new era.

The Hehe culture includes the moral concept of “good nature of people”， highlighting the importance of “showing kindness to others” and “accumulating virtue and doing good deeds”. “Being kind” is not just a process of self-cultivation， but also a righteous moral standard for a society to pursue， as well as moral and ethical norms for international relations. The Hehe culture includes the concept of a society that “agrees to disagree”， advocating the pursuit of unity in diversity on the precondition of recognizing and respecting differences and emphasizing the coexistence， integration and common development of different things. This is an important source of the Asian values which reflect the profound historical and cultural connotations of “inclusiveness” and “integration”. The Hehe culture includes the concept of international relations advocating “peace among countries”， “prioritizing peace”， “valuing credibility and harmony” and “developing friendly and benevolent relationship with neighbors”. These ideas reflect the philosophy of peace and cooperation in Chinese civilization， becoming the cultural gene of China’s good neighborliness and an important philosophical foundation for the Asian values. The culture of harmony includes the outlook on the universe that believes in “the unity between man and nature”， advocates for the “Tao operates naturally” and promotes harmonious coexistence and interdependence between man and nature. This is the source of the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind that coexists， also the cultural foundation for building a community with a shared future with neighboring countries.

Secondly， China carries forward the diplomatic policy featuring good neighborliness. China’s pursuit of credibility and harmony in the new era is in line with China’s good neighborliness since the founding of the PRC. Since the 18th CPC National Congress， the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has remained firmly committed to an independent foreign policy of peace and improved China’s diplomatic strategies. Efforts have been made to break new ground and further highlight the position and role of China’s neighborhood in the course of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

The first is to inherit and carry forward the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. In the early years of the PRC， China joined hands with countries such as India and Myanmar to advocate the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence， which forcefully defended national sovereignty and independence， shaped the post-war international order and became an important norm in international relations till today. The vision of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries proposed by General Secretary Xi Jinping is an innovative development of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence in the new era. The vision captures the reality that China and its neighboring countries have a shared future and intertwined interests， positively responds to the world’s prevailing trend of peace， development， cooperation and win-win solutions， establishes the ethos of China’s diplomacy that prioritizes harmony and cooperation， exhibits the CPC’s commitment to the common good of the world and humanity， sets a new model of equality and coexistence for international relations， opens up new prospects for peace and progress and enriches the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.

The second is to upgrade and develop the principle of building friendship and partnership. The beginning of the 21st century has witnessed sound development of China’s relationship with its neighboring countries and the significant improvement of the neighborhood environment. The report to the 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China clearly positioned “building a good-neighborly relationship and partnership with our neighbors and enhancing regional cooperation” as the conceptual policy for neighborhood diplomacy. The report to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China once again made an important and comprehensive deliberation on China’s neighborhood diplomacy， proposing that “we will continue to promote friendship and partnership with our neighbors， consolidate friendly relations and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with them， and ensure that China’s development will bring more benefits to our neighbors”. Entering the new era， General Secretary Xi Jinping has assessed the situation and raised new requirements for neighborhood diplomacy. He has condensed， uplifted and further developed the policy of building friendship and partnership with neighbors， creatively proposed the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness， turning a series of ideas， concepts， and policies adopted in China’s neighborhood diplomacy into a systematic and fundamental principle. While the policy of building friendship and partnership with the neighboring countries stresses on principles， while the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness is elevated to a concept of values.

Thirdly， we must adhere to the Marxist concept of development that keeps pace with the times. Keeping up with the times is the character of Marxist theories. Marxism is a science of development. Marxism holds that society is an organic whole that is constantly changing and developing， and productive forces are the fundamental driving force behind social development. Theory serves as a guide for action and is tested by practice， constantly evolving with the changing times and the needs of practice.

China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era emphasizes that it is imperative to achieve the diplomatic goals well on the basis of fully understanding the rapidly changing world and the neighborhood. At present， changes of the world， of the times and of history unfold at an unprecedented pace. Since the 21st century， the wave of globalization has driven profound changes in global political and economic landscape. The collective rise of developing countries in Asia is especially drawing the world’s political and economic landscape. As the changes unfold in China’s neighborhood， the cooperation between China and its neighboring countries breaks new grounds in terms of both breadth and depth. New development calls for innovative approaches to neighborhood diplomacy to meet the need of the developing situation.

The theoretical innovation of neighborhood diplomacy in the new era adheres to the analytical method of historical materialism， emphasizing the development and innovation of neighborhood diplomacy concepts from historical evolution. In 2018， General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs that “to assess the international situation， it is imperative to develop a correct understanding of history， the big picture and China’s role”. In the work of neighborhood diplomacy， General Secretary Xi Jinping adopted a historical and cultural perspective to analyze the mutually-beneficial relationship between China’s own development and cooperation with its neighboring countries， and thus creatively put forward the principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness. He summarized the laws governing China’s relations with neighboring countries and extracted Asian values centering on peace， cooperation， inclusiveness and integration. He followed the prevailing trend of history and steered the direction of human progress， advocating seeking common ground while reserving differences and harmonious coexistence， proposing to build a community with a shared future in the neighborhood. Since the 18th CPC National Congress， China’s neighborhood diplomacy has been advanced vigorously， with a series of new concepts， which represent the practice and innovative development of Marxist theory on international relations and highlight the important role of Marxism in the neighborhood diplomacy.

Innovative Practice

Since entering the new era， China’s neighborhood diplomacy， with the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy as the guiding principle， has forged ahead， broken new ground and achieved a series of new achievements， which are seen in the following aspects.

Firstly， China advances high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. The development of China and its neighboring countries are mutually reinforcing and closely linked. General Secretary Xi Jinping inherited the historical tradition， followed the prevailing trend of the times and creatively put forward the Belt and Road Initiative （BRI）. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that the neighboring countries would be the primary BRI partners and beneficiaries. Neighboring countries are welcomed to engage in cooperation to jointly advance the BRI.

China and neighboring countries follow the principle of extensive consultation， joint contribution and shared benefits to strengthen the alignment of development strategies. China has signed MOUs with the majority of its neighbors to jointly advance the BRI and worked together with regional countries to advance the BRI cooperation within the framework of regional cooperation. China， together with SCO member states and ASEAN countries， has integrated the BRI into regional economic interconnectivity and formulated relevant cooperation programs and key initiatives.

Many BRI projects have been implemented in China’s neighboring countries， scoring remarkable achievements. Infrastructure connectivity is the priority of the BRI. The China- Laos Railway and the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway mark that Southeast Asia has embraced the “era of high speed railway”. Modernization of railway brought enormous convenience to the local people and accelerated the construction or preparation of railways linking China respectively with Thailand， Malaysia and Vietnam. The China-Europe Railway Express has run over 100，000 trips in total and the “steel camel” has connected over 100 cities in 11 Asian countries. China and the neighboring countries have strengthened multimodal transport channels， improved customs clearance convenience and comprehensively uplifted infrastructure connectivity with BRI partner countries. The joint BRI development has also driven a large amount of funding and technology to the regional countries and boosted the local infrastructure construction in the transportation， energy， digital and other fields. Within the BRI cooperation framework， cooperation mechanisms in such key sectors as infrastructure construction， trade and investment， industrial cooperation， finance and currency， people to people and cultural exchanges and cooperation keep emerging. As the BRI cooperation features being broad-based， diversified and open， more and more countries join various functional cooperation mechanisms.

Secondly， China actively develops a new pattern of regional cooperation. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at a symposium on relations with neighboring countries in 2013 that “we should coordinate resources in the fields of economy， trade， science and technology， as well as finance， leverage on comparative advantages， identify points of strategic convergence that deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with neighboring countries and vigorously engage in regional economic cooperation”; and that “we should accelerate the implementation of the strategies of free trade areas with our neighborhood as the basis， broaden the space for trade and investment cooperation and build a new pattern of regional economic integration”. Since the 18th CPC National Congress， China has continuously innovated regional cooperation models， promoted in-depth development of regional integration， and increasingly integrated its interests with neighboring countries， forming an interdependent and mutually beneficial cooperation pattern.

Efforts have been made to build a mutually beneficial and open trade system that is conducive to the long-term development of the region. Entering a new era， China， with the responsibility as a major country， has advanced the building of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific in a more proactive manner. President Xi Jinping has attended， moderated or addressed the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting for many times. He put forward Chinese initiatives and propositions， advocated the principle of openness and inclusiveness， innovative growth， connectivity and win-win cooperation， and called for establishing an Asia-Pacific partnership featuring mutual trust， inclusiveness， cooperation and win-win. In pursuit of higher-level institutional opening-up， China promotes the upgrading of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area （CAFTA） and has substantially concluded the negotiation for the CAFTA 3.0 version; China has concluded the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP） with regional partners to maximally integrate 27 trade arrangements and 44 investment agreements among members in the region， effectively boosting the development of the multilateral trading system and maintaining the stability of industrial and supply chains; China takes the initiative to connect with high-standard international economic and trade rules， such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership （CPTPP）. China also works with neighboring countries to expand cooperation in digital economy， green economy and maritime economy， cultivate new growth drivers for cooperation and accelerate the regional economic integration and trade cooperation facilitation.

Efforts have also been made to innovate regional cooperation mechanisms and create a new pattern of openness and cooperation. Since the establishment of the SCO， China and other member states have upheld the “Shanghai Spirit”， continuously consolidated the good neighborliness and political mutual trust as well as deepened cooperation in various fields. The SCO has become the regional international organization that covers the largest area and population. In March 2016， China joined hands with countries in the Mekong River Basin to establish the Lancang Mekong Cooperation （LMC） Mechanism. Since its launch， the six countries have achieved fruitful cooperation outcomes in such areas as connectivity， trade and investment， agriculture and poverty reduction， sustainable development as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges， creating a remarkable LMC model. In July 2020， China joined hands with the five Central Asian countries to establish the China-Central Asia mechanism. In May 2023， the China-Central Asia mechanism was upgraded from foreign ministers’ meeting to leaders’ summit， marking a new era of China-Central Asia cooperation.

Thirdly， China advances the building of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries. China’s neighborhood is where the vision was first put forward， as well as a concentrated region where countries aspiring to build a bilateral community with a shared future with China are located. Among those that have established such a bilateral community with China， the vast majority are China’s neighboring countries in the traditional sense. China has taken the initiative in signing diplomatic documents with neighboring countries to clearly declare the common endeavors to build a bilateral community with a shared future， which gradually forms a network of bilateral communities with a shared future. Among them， China has signed such documents for building a community with a shared future with all the five countries along the Mekong River and the five Central Asian countries. Malaysia， Indonesia， Pakistan and Mongolia among other countries have also joined the cause of building a community with a shared future. In addition， China has signed action plans or cooperation documents with countries such as Pakistan， Cambodia， Laos and Myanmar to build a community with a shared future， indicating that the building of a community with a shared future has been translated from policies to concrete actions.

While building bilateral communities with a shared future， China has put forward a host of initiatives to build a regional community with a shared future. China has worked together with relevant countries to consolidate consensus and expand cooperation. China is committed to building a closer community with a shared future with ASEAN and the China-ASEAN relationship has become the most successful， dynamic and shining example of East Asian cooperation. The LMC is the first new-type regional cooperation mechanism aimed at building a community with a shared future in the principle of extensive consultation， joint contribution and shared outcomes. The SCO remains committed to the “Shanghai Spirit” and takes solid steps towards the building of a community with a shared future， showing growing influence and attraction. Steady progress is made in building a China-Central Asia community with a shared future. China advances the building of a closer China-Pacific Island Countries community with a shared future， which serves as a model of South-South cooperation and mutual benefits.

Conclusion

Entering the new era， the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has adhered to the Marxist concept of development that keeps pace with the times. Based on a profound analysis of the new features of changes in the world and the neighborhood， a host of visions and proposals for neighborhood diplomacy have been innovatively put forward， marking a magnificent chapter in conducting China’s neighborhood diplomacy in the new era and fostering a new pattern of neighborhood diplomacy. The principle of amity， sincerity， mutual benefit and inclusiveness in neighborhood diplomacy is gaining growing attractiveness， appeal and influence. The Asian values centered on peace， cooperation， openness and inclusiveness are receiving increasing recognition. Under the guidance of the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy， China has advanced the building of a community with a shared future with its neighboring countries at both bilateral and regional levels， translating the building of such communities from visions to practices.

As transformation unseen in a century unfolds， the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered a critical period. The international situation and neighborhood environment are becoming increasingly complex with growing factors of uncertainty and instability. China’s neighborhood diplomacy faces simultaneously rising opportunities and challenges. The neighborhood diplomacy will play an increasingly important role in China’s overall diplomatic strategy. On the new journey， China will continue to meet the requirements of the times， adhere to and apply the Marxist worldview and methodology， constantly innovate the theory and practice of neighborhood diplomacy， and open up new prospects for building a community with a shared future in the neighborhood.

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Liu Qing is Vice President and Senior Research Fellow of the China Institute of International Studies