China's Xi proposes 'global security initiative,' without giving details

BOAO, China – Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday proposed a "global security initiative" that upholds the principle of "indivisible security," a concept also endorsed by Russia, although he gave no details of how it would be implemented. During a video speech to the annual Boao Asia Forum, Xi said that the world should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, while paying attention to the "legitimate" security concerns of all. "We should uphold the principle of indivisibility of security, build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture, and oppose the building of national security on the basis of insecurity in other countries," Xi told the gathering on the southern Chinese island of Hainan. In talks over Ukraine, Russia has insisted that Western governments respect a 1999 agreement based on the principle of "indivisible security" that no country can strengthen its own security at the expense of others'. China and Russia have grown increasingly close, and China has refused to condemn Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a "special operation" to demilitarize the country.