The "Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence" has been followed as basic norms guiding China's diplomacy since the country's founding on October 1, 1949.

Sixty years later, China has set up diplomatic ties with 171 countries.

"Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence"

In December 1953, Chinese Premier and Foreign Minister Zhou Enlai met with a visiting Indian government delegation and put forward for the first time the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence.

These were, namely, mutual respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful co-existence. The two countries agreed that the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence would be pursued as the guiding principles for handling bilateral relations. After that, the Five Principles were followed as basic norms guiding China's diplomacy. China has strived to develop friendly relations with all other countries on the basis of these principles. At the same time, the five principles have also been widely recognized by the international community in governing international relations.

In 1955, the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence were made known to the whole world at the Asian-African Conference held in Bandung, Indonesia. It was the first multilateral international meeting that the New China had attended.

Premier Zhou Enlai speaks at the Afro-Asian Bandung Conference held in Indonesia, April, 1955. During the meeting, Premier Zhou advocated the principle of "seeking common ground while shelving differences" and suggested setting the Five Principles as a base for establishing friendly, cooperative relations between countries of different social systems.

Major Diplomatic Ties

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