Anything that can reduce conflict will help bring greater harmony to the world, former French President François Hollande said in a recent interview with Meng Liang, Beijing Review correspondent and Chairman of The Mencius Foundation. Similarly, former European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told Beijing Review that civilizations are inherently opposed to warfare. Edited excerpts of their remarks follow:

François Hollande: The COVID-19 pandemic plus the conflicts in the world have, in a way, broken what was going on before these crises hit. Today's global growth is weakened by the fact that world trade is not progressing as it did in the past. It's true that for several months, there has been an upsurge in protectionism. In other words, world trade is in danger of being affected by protectionist, sanitary or tax measures that will prevent products from circulating. As for the United States, today it is rather tempted by protectionism. We have to work with the U.S., Europe, China and other countries to prevent protectionism from resurfacing.

I believe that the idea of cooperation on a global scale, considering the diversity and community of the world's responsibilities, as well as the Global Civilizations Initiative (GCI) can help to ease the current tensions, which have been provoked by conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. (The GCI, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping last year, calls for respecting the diversity of civilizations, advocating the common values of humanity, valuing the inheritance and innovation of civilizations, and strengthening international people-to-people exchange and cooperation.—Ed.)

So anything that can reduce conflict, anything that can create new trust—and it's trust that's essential—will help to bring greater harmony to the world, as well as more growth and development. Because the risk is that political conflicts will end up jeopardizing trade and economic exchanges.

The message that Chinese President Xi Jinping is trying to convey with the GCI must therefore be understood as a message aimed at resolving conflicts and promoting greater cooperation.

France and China also need to promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges, so that people can understand each other better. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)was an economic one, but we need to add to it a more political and cultural initiative so that there can be greater mobility between people on different continents. (The BRI is an initiative to boost connectivity along and beyond the ancient Silk Road routes proposed by China in 2013.—Ed.)

Jean-Claude Juncker: The fact is that China and the European Union are each other's primary trading partners, sharing mutual interests that need to be protected and promoted. China plays a crucial role as a global partner for the EU, particularly in matters related to trade.

My most recent encounter with President Xi Jinping occurred in March 2019 in Paris, during a meeting that also included French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. At that forum, we conveyed to our Chinese counterparts that, despite being competitors for clear reasons and acknowledging the systemic differences that distinguish our civilizations—the Chinese one and the European one—we must strive to harmonize our perspectives on these matters.

I'm against a clash between civilizations because diverse civilizations have to live together in search for common intersections. Everyone has the duty to respect different civilizations.

Regrettably, recent times have witnessed the construction of barriers that impede human interaction and cooperation. I don't like walls. The only one I like is China's Great Wall, which is impressive and harmless; other walls are not as harmless as they should be.

Essential to the dialogue between civilizations is the engagement among various stakeholders and the respect displayed to cultures beyond our own. The European community must honor the Chinese civilization, whose immense contributions to humanity cannot be overlooked. China is a very old nation by comparison to the U.S., even by comparison to the European civilization. They were writing poems when we were trying to learn our own language.

That is why I advocate the dialogue between civilizations, because it has value in promoting mutual understanding. If you understand the civilization of others better, you are less likely to go to war. Civilization is against war. If you are against war, then the dialogue between civilizations is very important.

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon

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