What were the highlights, key points, priorities and notable excerpts and quotes in Han Zheng's speech at the UN General Assembly?

Han Zheng, 71, is the Vice President of China, a position he has held since March 2023 under President Xi Jinping. He previously served as Mayor and then Party Secretary of Shanghai, and is regarded as one of Beijing's most senior diplomatic representatives for high-profile international events. He has served as Xi's special envoy at occasions such as the coronation of King Charles III and the second inauguration of President Donald Trump.

Here are the highlights and excerpts from Han Zheng's speech at the 81st UN General Assembly.

Highlights

• Defend the postwar order. The headline ask was direct: the world must safeguard the international order built after World War II. As UN News reported, Han told the Assembly that geopolitical conflicts, widening development gaps, and mounting global challenges make multilateralism more urgent than ever. His line: "The world wants peace not war."

• Development as the organizing principle. Han placed development at the top of every agenda, arguing that raising living standards is both the purpose of global cooperation and the surest path to peace. He pointed to China's Belt and Road Initiative, the infrastructure and investment program Beijing has used to build influence across Asia, Africa, and beyond, saying China has now worked through Belt and Road with three-quarters of the world's nations.

• China's domestic record as proof of concept. Han offered China's own trajectory as the model: "China has created two miracles at home, namely fast economic roles and long-term social stability."

• Protectionism produces no winners. The closest he came to a sharp edge was on trade. Against the backdrop of an ongoing tariff dispute with the United States, he said: "Both history and reality prove that countries can hardly achieve development without an open and cooperative international environment. Protectionism produces no winners."

• Multilateralism over unilateral action. He argued that disputes must be settled through dialogue, not force: "Multilateralism is a choice made by humanity after going through scourges. We should settle the differences and disputes through dialogue and consultation, and oppose unilateral military actions that violate the UN Charter and circumvent Security Council authorization."

• The Middle East and Gaza. On the ongoing US-Israel war with Iran, Han kept it measured: "China holds that the sovereignty and security of countries in the Middle East, including the Gulf, should be respected." On Gaza, UN News reported he called for reconstruction to proceed "in accordance with the principle of the Palestinians governing Palestine," and for a return to the two-state solution.

• Cuba. Without naming the United States, Han called on the "relevant country" to stop threatening Cuba and to lift the embargo and sanctions imposed on the island.

• Ukraine. He pointed to four principles put forward by Xi Jinping as the framework guiding China's "constructive role" in seeking a resolution.

• Cultural respect over condescension. One of his more pointed philosophical lines: "Diversity has created splendor in the world. Condescension and the self-centered mindset have no place in the interactions among different cultures."

Priorities

• Boost the voice of the Global South, the term used for economically developing nations, in UN decision-making.
• Reform the UN to strengthen, not shrink, its bodies and mandates.
• Support for the outgoing Secretary-General António Guterres, with a call for his successor to "honor the UN Charter, have exceptional capability, uphold integrity and fairness, and demonstrate courage and dedication."
• Mark the 55th anniversary of the restoration of China's UN seat and push Xi Jinping's Global Governance Initiative, which Beijing says has now drawn support from nearly 160 countries.

In his own words

On peace: "The world wants peace not war."

On multilateralism: "Multilateralism is a choice made by humanity after going through scourges. We should settle the differences and disputes through dialogue and consultation, and oppose unilateral military actions that violate the UN Charter and circumvent Security Council authorization."

On trade and protectionism: "Both history and reality prove that countries can hardly achieve development without an open and cooperative international environment. Protectionism produces no winners."

On China's domestic achievement: "China has created two miracles at home, namely fast economic roles and long-term social stability."

On the postwar order: "We should safeguard the postwar international order" and "reject the Cold War mindset and block confrontation."

On cultural diversity: "Diversity has created splendor in the world. Condescension and the self-centered mindset have no place in the interactions among different cultures. Promoting mutual trust, mutual respect, solidarity and harmonious coexistence is the right approach to take."

On the Middle East: "China holds that the sovereignty and security of countries in the Middle East, including the Gulf, should be respected."

Worth knowing

The speech landed the morning after Xi held a state dinner with President Trump in Washington and visited the National Archives, making it something of an anticlimax by the Associated Press's assessment: the bigger diplomatic action had already happened across town. The AP noted that Han's most significant presence was symbolic, since Beijing regularly uses major international stages to build the profile of senior officials on the global stage. Han had also spoken at the UN General Assembly in 2023; last year it was Premier Li Qiang who represented China. Wang Yi, China's senior diplomat, was in Washington accompanying Xi and did not speak at the Assembly this year.

Taiwan was conspicuously absent. China rarely misses the opportunity to assert its claim over the self-governing island at the UN, so the omission drew notice, particularly given ongoing tensions with Washington over Taiwan's defense.

Watch and read the full speech

Watch the full speech on YouTube

Watch: China's VP Warns Against Iran War, US Protectionism | YouTube