In his previous book, Creative Involvement: the New Direction of China's Diplomacy, Professor Wang Yizhou urges all foreign affairs-related departments and people to proactively and voluntarily participate in the discussion and resolution of regional and international issues, while sticking to the basic policy of reform and opening up. "China should reconsider its diplomatic policy in adapting to changes at home and abroad. It needs to provide more assistance and public goods that could benefit people, alongside a good environment, public health and peace," said the professor. He added that Chinese foreign policy makers should not copy the Western hegemonic model of forcing other nations to accept their way of thinking. Instead, China should be cautious, creative and constructive when dealing with international issues. "It will be a new option for China's diplomacy based on its current global status and strength as well as its culture and traditions. It will bring a Chinese style to the world stage during the process of peaceful development," said Professor Wang Yizhou.

Zhao Kejin, a researcher with Tsinghua University, explained that most scholars apply Western theories to China-related issues, completely ignoring the fact that China and the West have very different histories. "Professor Wang Yizhou has set a very good example for Chinese scholars," said Zhao. "We must seek solutions to China's problems by encouraging creative thought." He said that Professor Wang Yizhou's suggestion of creative involvement is an important exploration of China's academic independence within international relations theory.

China's challenges

China's global role has changed from isolation to becoming a major player, said Professor Wang Yizhou in his book, and it wants to be a responsible country that contributes positively to the world. He suggested China should provide more public goods to the world, including outward assistance and inward creative thought and ideas.

Professor Wang Yizhou concluded that Chinese leaders are facing many challenges, such as rising nationalist sentiment, territorial disputes at sea, pressure from the U.S. strategic rebalance to the Asia-Pacific, conflict between growing domestic energy consumption and related foreign reliance, and its status in the international arena. China must therefore update its traditional pattern of staying low-key or silent in international affairs, and turn to more active and creative global involvement. "Creative involvement is not a betrayal of our traditional diplomacy of non-intervention. On the contrary, it has developed according to new circumstances, and in correction of a previously unjust international order. Creative involvement will protect and enhance China's image as a just, responsible and peace-loving power," he wrote.

Professor Zhang Zhizhou, from Beijing Foreign Studies University, said, "The principle of non-intervention is very important, but not absolute. It should adapt in accordance with the changing situation." China needs to think more about providing better public goods in a new era, he said, to better involve itself in global governance, said Zhang. He explained that increased national strength and diplomatic pressure are reasons behind China's diplomatic transformation, but do not provide full justification. "Western political and diplomatic theories, pertaining to economic management and financial governance, have been found wanting. As a major power, China should take responsibility and provide public goods such as policies and theories to the world," said Zhang.

Using Africa as an experimental plot for creative involvement, Wang Yizhou suggested extending China's non-intervention principle in the following ways: providing assistance to enhance Africa's peace-keeping ability, conducting more security-related projects, promoting cooperation with regional organizations and major countries, properly adjusting its non-alliance policy that originated during the Cold War, establishing a multi-level and flexible foreign assistance policy, and maintaining balance between domestic development and foreign assistance.

Li Dongyan, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, emphasized that China-Africa relations have entered a new era. China needs a new strategy to deal with new environment and challenges on the continent. "China should not provide unconditional assistance anymore. We need to perfect our non-intervention principle, and monitor African countries to prevent corruption and promote the efficiency of Chinese assistance," said Li.

Professor Wang Yizhou emphasized that diplomacy is a manifestation of internal issues. Therefore, he believes China will have limited opportunity to creatively join in global governance without a sound domestic foundation. He plans to further cover diplomatic innovation and related domestic political and social points in his new book, which will be published in 2014. "China must ask itself whether it can make constructive contributions to the world as a global power," Professor Wang Yizhou said, while also offering the answer, "Certainly, China can influence the world by changing itself."

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