At a press briefing on the sidelines of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) annual session, Liu Jieyi, a spokesman for the gathering, presented Beijing’s foreign-policy posture as a source of global stability in an era of geopolitical turbulence. Citing Xi Jinping Thought on diplomacy, Liu framed China’s simultaneous pursuit of “high-quality development” and “high-level opening” as benefits that extend beyond its borders and contribute to international public goods.
Liu highlighted the CPPCC’s practical role in those efforts, outlining a busy programme of exchanges with civil society, think tanks and parliamentary interlocutors. Over the past year, CPPCC delegations led by senior members visited more than ten countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America; the body hosted multiple foreign delegations, convened the 2025 China Economic and Social Forum and the 20th China–EU Roundtable, and invited over a hundred foreign participants into its “enter the CPPCC” activities.
The messaging is twofold: domestically it bolsters the Party-state’s credentials as capable of steering China through global turbulence, and externally it is an assertive exercise in people-to-people diplomacy aimed at shaping narratives about China’s international role. Liu emphasised exchanges on economic planning, environmental protection, poverty reduction and women’s development as concrete areas where China has experience to share — a reminder that Beijing prefers showcasing problem-solving credentials rather than military or hard-power signals.
This outreach is concentrated on the Global South but also includes institutional engagement with Europe, reflecting a pragmatic hedging strategy. By deepening contact with non-governmental actors, the CPPCC complements state-to-state diplomacy: it seeks to lock in goodwill, diffuse tensions, and create constituencies abroad that view cooperation with China as mutually beneficial.
The announcement should be read against a more fractious international backdrop: rising great-power competition, lingering post-pandemic economic adjustments, and debates over supply chains and technological decoupling. Presenting China as “the most stable, reliable and proactive” force is a narrative aimed at filling a perceived leadership vacuum in global governance while implicitly countering Western critiques about Beijing’s intentions.
Sceptics will note limits to this approach. Soft-power initiatives through advisory and consultative bodies can build contact and influence but are unlikely to erase substantive geopolitical differences around trade, technology and values. Economic headwinds at home and growing strategic competition mean that Beijing’s capacity to translate goodwill into long-term institutional change abroad will face practical constraints.
Still, the CPPCC’s expanded diplomatic footprint signals a deliberate strategic choice: Beijing is investing in diversified channels of engagement to normalize Chinese policy approaches, amplify its policy prescriptions, and cultivate partners outside formal diplomatic tracks. For international audiences, the message is clear — China is intensifying its non-state and people-to-people diplomacy to shape the post-crisis global order on terms that reflect its developmental model and priorities.