China’s defense chief calls for ‘consensus’ in global security, cooperation in AI, outer space

China’s Defense Minister Dong Jun on Wednesday stressed the need for “consensus” and “action-oriented” governance of global security, calling for cooperation in artificial intelligence and outer space.

Dong, however, did not mention Taiwan or the disputed South China Sea in his address to the 13th Beijing Xiangshan Forum, which opened in the Chinese capital a day earlier.

“For global security governance, action is the key and outcomes the ultimate measure,” said Dong, according to CGTN.

“Now, the world is undergoing accelerated changes unseen in a century, and international security stands at a fragile juncture,” Dong noted, stressing “concerted efforts to forge consensus through a new vision of security, uphold stability with multilateralism.”

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the forum, themed “Build Consensus on Stability, Advance Security Governance Together.”

Some 2,000 official representatives, scholars, experts and observers from around 100 nations, regions and international organizations are attending the three-day gathering.

Urging the international community to “firmly oppose actions that involved forming exclusive blocs and exacerbating tensions,” Dong, however, lent support to cooperation in artificial intelligence, outer space and the deep sea so that emerging technologies could “better benefit all humanity,” the South China Morning Post newspaper reported.

Warning against a “zero-sum mindset,” Dong called for vigilance against “hegemonism” as well as “militarism.”

Multilateralism must be upheld in a “turbulent” world, he stressed, describing it as “essential” to safeguarding overall global strategic stability.

Urging major powers to shoulder their responsibilities, he said the “key” to security governance was narrowing the development gap and that “development is the greatest guarantee of security” for countries of the Global South.

“Nothing in the world is difficult, as long as we are willing to climb,” said Dong, adding that the Chinese military was ready to “share its experience of building and governing its military and help within our capacity.”