The Chinese Concept of National Security in the "New Era": Preliminary Results of the XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China

Relevance of the research topic. The XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China (hereinafter referred to as the CPC), which took place in October 2022, should rightfully be considered a long–awaited event of 2022. It outlined China's development plans for the next five years - critical both for China's development and for the rest of the world. The "era of change" that has been going on for 15 years, which began on the day of the "Munich speech" of Russian President Vladimir Putin (Speech and discussion at the Munich Security Policy Conference, February 10, 2007, URL: http://kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/24034 ), showed the rejection of many participants in international relations to move to a new multipolar world order ^[1]. One of the world's pressing priorities is to improve global governance, when the protracted COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical conflicts, and the negative reaction to globalization are intertwined with each other, and the deficit of peace, security, trust and governance is increasing. Attempts by some countries to restrain and limit China's development indicate the urgent need for a new model of international relations. As China becomes an influential and strong state, it strives to show that there is and should be another kind of global order in which priority is given to peace and development ^[2]. Over the past decade, Secretary General Xi has repeatedly called for real multilateralism and a UN-oriented international system, as well as proposed the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative. At the same time, the national security policy was being improved in connection with the clarification of the external and internal vectors of the development of Chinese statehood.

Since 2014, the Chinese government has been using the term "comprehensive national security" (zongti guojia anquan guan, comprehensive national security), which was introduced into the political lexicon by Xi Jinping in his address at the founding meeting of the CPC Central National Security Commission (zhongyang guojia anquan weiyuanhui) on April 15, 2014. The Secretary General identified eleven aspects of this concept: political security, territorial security, military security, economic security, cultural security, social security, scientific and technical security, information security, environmental security, resource security and nuclear security. China's military strategy of 2015 considers these aspects in a broader context: "... it is necessary to adhere to a holistic view of national security, to balance internal and external security, the security of the country and citizens, traditional and non-traditional security, security of existence and security of development, as well as China's own security and the general security of the world." (China's Military Strategy 2015 (full text), URL: http://english.www.gov.cn/archive/white_paper/2015/05/27/content_281475115610833.htm ).

The main goal of comprehensive national security is to "maintain the stability" (weiwen) of China's political system. "Comprehensive security" should also not be interpreted as collective security within the framework of the alliance, since China has almost consistently pursued a policy of non-alignment in security and defense issues.

The legitimacy of China's political leadership depends, among other things, on successful national development. It considers national development as the main national interest. The concept of comprehensive national authority is used to monitor and measure development. The way China understands its unified centralized management system, the combination of internal security and national stability with external security, which must be provided by military means, leads to a combination of traditional and non-traditional areas of security policy (Corff O. “Rich Country, Strong Army”: China's Comprehensive National Security, URL: ttps://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep22151 ).

The "New Era" was designated by China in 2019 in a new comprehensive policy document on national security: the White Paper "China's National Defense in the New Era" (China's National Defense in the New Era 2019 (full text), URL: https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/whitepaper/201907/24/content_WS5d3941ddc6d08408f502283d.html ). The novelty marked a qualitatively new approach of the state to positioning itself in the international arena and determining the responsibility voluntarily assumed in foreign policy relations. Speaking at the opening of the XX National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping declared the "highest priority" of the development of the Chinese state, however, the term "security" was mentioned almost twice as often as compared to his previous speech in 2017 (91 times against 55), and the term "economy" - only 60 times, this is the minimum indicator its use in the most important political statement since 1949, when the CPC came to power (Xi Mentions of ‘Security’ Eclipse ‘Economy’ in Historic Shift, URL: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-18/xi-mentions-of-security-eclipse-economy-in-historic-shift). This clearly demonstrates the importance of national security at the present stage, and this trend is observed against the background of an unfavorable and complex external environment. According to the researchers, the era of defending economic growth at any cost is mostly over (Xi Mentions of ‘Security’ Eclipse ‘Economy’ in Historic Shift, URL: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-18/xi-mentions-of-security-eclipse-economy-in-historic-shift).

The purpose of the study is to characterize the features of the concept of national security of China in the aspect of its clarification at the XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China. The objectives of the study are to determine the main features of the concept of national security of China in the "new era" and to identify the features of its implementation following the results of the XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

In order to obtain the most reliable scientific results, system-structural, formal-logical and formal-legal methods were used.

The subject of the study, the source base of the study, contradictions in existing studies and the author's position. The subject of the study is represented by regulatory legal acts and sources of "soft law" of China, which establish the content of the concept of national security.

Various aspects of the topic chosen by us for research are the subject of close attention of Russian Sinologists – representatives of both political and legal science. In particular, A.V. Lomanov outlined the characteristics of China's foreign policy ideology on the eve of the XX National Congress of the CPC ^{[3, pp. 36-37]}, noting the government's comprehensive approach to seemingly purely economic national projects and the crystallization of the concept of the "community of the fate of mankind" through the prism of national security, as well as the expansion of the presence of the CPC ideology in the field of foreign policy. The scientist rightly pointed out the need for a deep "analysis of Chinese interpretations of "Xi Jinping's foreign policy ideas", systematic consideration of key slogans and political attitudes affecting the formation of China's relations with the outside world" ^{[3, pp. 40-41]}. The research of K.K. Merkulov is also of interest, who reviews a number of new publications by PRC experts on some topical issues of the formation of a new international order and China's foreign policy on the eve and after the CPC congresses ^[4].

D.V. Gordienko's research ^{[5; 6]} is devoted to assessing the impact of the possible consequences of the implementation of the Chinese concept of the "community of the fate of mankind" on the system of international relations in the XXI century and ensuring the national security of the People's Republic of China, the United States of America and the Russian Federation. R.A. Polonchuk reviewed in detail the provisions of the White Paper on National Defense in 2019, noting the connection of the above concept with defense strategies: "a prosperous China creates opportunities for the development of all states, and the powerful Armed Forces of the People's Republic of China are a "reliable support" of the emerging global security architecture" ^{[7, p. 93]}.

Ts writes about the role of cultural values in China 's strategic plans . Liu, who emphasizes that "Xi Jinping's system of cultural strategies of China is focused on the formation of a new "harmonious" world without a "virtuous" war through economic expansion, and not force methods against the background of the principle of harmony, the sinocentric concept and ethics of the use of force of Confucianism, which have their roots in the centuries-old Chinese tradition" ^{[8, p. 141]}.

Given the multidimensional nature of the national security concept, a number of studies on China's approaches to information security should be noted. Of the recent works, we note the Russian scientific work of A.R. Goncharenko, who conducted a comprehensive study on the content and correlation of the concepts of "hybrid war" and "unlimited war". He pointed to the dominant thesis in Chinese military doctrine about the conduct of war in non-military spheres, expressed in the concept of "unlimited war" ^[9]. In the development of this concept, the Chinese authors emphasize the unorthodox approach of the government to the use of tools for the implementation of the national security strategy: these are mass media (the synchronicity of the work of a massive block of military media should be particularly noted ^[10]) and legal tools, for example, the principle of determining the state jurisdiction of data based on the principle of data localization ^[11].

The main part. The white paper "China's National Defense in the New Era", published in 2019, became a kind of "response" of the government to the US National Security Strategy 2017 (National Security Strategy 2017) and the US National Defense Strategy 2018 (National Defense Strategy 2018). Both of these documents identified China as the main reason for strengthening the potential of the US armed forces and singled it out as the main strategic competitor of the United States.

In its White Paper, China comments on all the key theses of these two documents, and its actions, considered by the Americans as a threat, are qualified as fair and peaceful. The White Paper summarizes the overall nature of the United States' defense efforts, emphasizing that international strategic competition is on the rise. According to the Chinese government, the US has adjusted its national security and defense strategies and adopted a unilateral policy. They provoked and intensified competition between major countries, significantly increased defense spending, pushed for the creation of additional capacities in the field of nuclear, space, cyber and missile defense and undermined global strategic stability. NATO continued its expansion, stepped up military deployment in Central and Eastern Europe and frequently conducted military exercises (China's National Defense in the New Era 2019 (full text), URL: https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/whitepaper/201907/24/content_WS5d3941ddc6d08408f502283d.html ).

China emphasizes its efforts to unite Asia in peaceful cooperation through organizations such as the SCO, the Informal Meeting of the Defense Ministers of China and ASEAN (China-ASEAN Defense Ministers' Informal Meeting) and the Meeting of ASEAN Defense Ministers Plus (ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Plus, ADMM-Plus). The Chinese authorities claim that the region has become a center of competition for large countries, which has brought uncertainty to regional security. The US is strengthening its Asia-Pacific military alliances and increasing its military presence and intervention, complicating regional security. The deployment of the mobile ground-based THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) anti-missile system in the Republic of Korea has seriously undermined the regional strategic balance and strategic security interests of the countries of the region (China's National Defense in the New Era 2019 (full text), URL: https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/whitepaper/201907/24/content_WS5d3941ddc6d08408f502283d.html ). The modernization and expansion of the Chinese armed forces qualifies as an entirely defensive process. In particular, it is noted that China's military security faces risks associated with technological surprise and the growing technological gap between generations. Therefore, it is necessary to make more efforts to modernize the armed forces to meet the requirements of national security, since the PLA is still far behind the leading armies of the world (China's National Defense in the New Era 2019 (full text), URL: https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/whitepaper/201907/24/content_WS5d3941ddc6d08408f502283d.html ).

The opening speech of Secretary General Xi Jinping at the opening of the XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China on October 15, 2022 was constructed in a similar tone. He has repeatedly stressed the need to balance economic development with security issues, especially in a post-covid economy. The consequences of an economic recession (a slowdown in growth in the case of China) have social consequences in the form of social unrest, domestic political instability, up to public unrest and the resumption of armed conflicts of both domestic and international character.

The main theme of the jubilee Congress traditionally sounded as an appeal: Hold high the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese specifics and strive to build a modern socialist country in unity in all respects (Xi Jinping. Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects: Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, October 16, 2022 / Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the People’s Republic of China, URL: https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202210/t20221025_10791908.html). The report itself was built logically sequentially and revealed 15 (fifteen) main theses-goals for the next five years, presented in the form of separate sections:

1) The work of the last five years and the great changes of the first decade of the "new era".

2) A new frontier in the adaptation of Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the time.

3) A new journey of the "new era": the missions and tasks of the Communist Party of China.

4) Accelerating the creation of a new development model and striving for high-quality development.

5) Revitalizing China through science and education and training a strong workforce for modernization.

6) Promoting inclusive people's democracy and ensuring people's governance of the state.

7) Implementing law-based governance on all fronts and promoting the rule of law in China.

8) Strengthening cultural strength and consolidating new successes in the development of socialist culture.

9) Improving people's well-being and improving the quality of life.

10) Striving for green development and promoting harmony between humanity and nature.

11) Modernization of China's national security system and capacity and ensuring national security and social stability.

12) Achievement of the centennial goal of the People's Liberation Army and further modernization of the national defense and armed forces.

13) Maintaining and improving the policies of one country, two systems and promoting national reunification.

14) Promoting world peace and development and building a human community with a common future.

15) The implementation of full and strict self-government and the promotion of the great new project of party building in the "new era".

As you can see, a separate, eleventh section was devoted directly to national security. The Secretary General stressed the commitment to the concept of "comprehensive national security", stating that national security is the basis of national revival, and social stability is a prerequisite for building a strong and prosperous China. Therefore, the Chinese State should resolutely adhere to a holistic approach to national security and promote national security in all areas and stages of the work of the party and the country in order to ensure national security and social stability. An integrated approach to this concept can be traced in the following thesis: "We should consider the security of the people as our ultimate goal, economic security as our foundation, military, technological, cultural and social security as important pillars, and international security as a pillar" (Xi Jinping. Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects: Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, October 16, 2022 / Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the People’s Republic of China, URL: https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202210/t20221025_10791908.html). To this end, coordinated steps will be taken to ensure external and internal security, national and public security, traditional and non-traditional security, personal security and general security. The plans for the coming years include the simultaneous implementation of national security measures and the creation of conditions to ensure it. Such conditions include public support for national security and social stability, improvement of China's participation mechanisms in global security management, and promotion of the Peaceful China initiative to a higher level. Thanks to this new security architecture, better protection of China's new development model is possible. The achievement of these goals will be facilitated by the implementation of four tasks: 1) improving the national security system; 2) strengthening the capacity to ensure national security; 3) improving public security management and 4) improving the social management system.

In order to fulfill the first task - improving the national security system - it is necessary to maintain a centralized, unified leadership of the Central Committee in the work on national security and ensure that this leadership system is highly effective and authoritative. To do this, the mechanisms for coordinating its work will be strengthened. The need to improve the legal, strategic and political systems for ensuring national security, as well as risk monitoring and early warning systems together with the national emergency management system was also emphasized.

The Secretary General highlighted the importance of improving security systems in key sectors, as well as the coordination and management of large projects. He highlighted such areas of national security as economic, financial, cybernetic, information, biological, resource, nuclear, space, marine and critical infrastructure. Mechanisms for countering foreign sanctions, interference and extraterritorial jurisdiction will be strengthened. The plans of the top party leadership include the allocation of national security resources and the creation of a coordinated, multidimensional and highly effective system for ensuring national security in all spheres (Xi Jinping. Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects: Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, October 16, 2022 / Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the People’s Republic of China, URL: https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202210/t20221025_10791908.html).

Strengthening the national security capacity will be carried out by implementing the following measures: ensuring food, energy and resource security, as well as key production and supply chains; ensuring security, protecting the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and legal entities abroad; protecting the maritime rights and interests of China; protecting the sovereignty, security and interests of the Chinese state sustainable development; expanding opportunities to prevent and mitigate major risks and maintaining a state of heightened readiness for systemic security risks; tough suppression of infiltration, sabotage, subversive and separatist activities of hostile forces; broad public awareness of the importance of national security. Xi Jinping is deeply convinced that these measures will increase public awareness of national security and strengthen the public line of defense.

In order to solve the task of improving public safety management, preventive work among the population and the creation of a nationwide system of security and emergency response are put in the first place. Such a system will be based on a preventive model. Attention will be paid to monitoring workplace safety risks and strengthening safety oversight in key sectors. It is planned to expand the capacity to prevent natural disasters, mitigate their consequences and provide assistance, as well as to respond and provide support during major emergencies. The Secretary General stressed the importance of strengthening the regional emergency response capacity. Special attention will be paid to the safety of food and medicines, to this end, surveillance, early warning, detection and prevention systems in the field of biosafety will be improved. The protection of personal information is one of the important activities in this area (Xi Jinping. Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects: Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, October 16, 2022 / Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the People’s Republic of China, URL: https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202210/t20221025_10791908.html).

The improvement of the social management system occupies one of the central places in Xi Jinping's report. In his speech, he focused on this issue, defining cooperation, participation and common benefits as its principles. Being consistent in building the ideological basis for the development of Chinese society, the Secretary General this time mentioned the "Fengqiao model" (Fengqiao model, a village movement in eastern China during the party leadership of Mao Zedong) as a tool to encourage governance at the level of territorial communities. Mechanisms for resolving disputes between members of the public and tools for addressing public complaints will be improved. In the new conditions, it is important to maintain open channels for obtaining information about the problems of the population, considering their claims and protecting their rights and interests. To this end, e-government tools (at the level of urban and rural communities) will be improved, thanks to which problems will be solved at the local level as they arise.

Internal security requires an active approach: law enforcement, the fight against organized crime, prevention and prevention of illegal and criminal actions are impossible without broad public participation. Xi Jinping stressed the importance of creating an atmosphere of respect for citizens who selflessly participate in emergency response activities. According to him, this will contribute to the consolidation of civil society and the development of a social management system in which every citizen of the state fulfills his duties and shares benefits (Xi Jinping. Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects: Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, October 16, 2022 / Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the People’s Republic of China, URL: https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202210/t20221025_10791908.html).

In his keynote speech, the CPC General Secretary did not ignore the successes of the current national security system, which managed to achieve full control over the oppositional public and political forces of Hong Kong, incited by foreign politicians, turning the situation from "chaos into management". The top leadership of the CPC is fully ready to oppose Taiwan's independence and is actively fighting island separatism (Nikolay Vavilov – China, URL: https://t.me/shuohuaxia/8017 ).

Conclusions. Summing up the results of Xi Jinping's speech at the XX National Congress of the Communist Party of China, we note that the concept of China's national security is embodied in the "comprehensive security concept" model. The content of the report of the CPC Secretary General and the tone of political rhetoric is a natural result of the events and challenges that humanity has faced in recent years. Among the features of the implementation of China's national security concept in the "new era", the following should be highlighted. First, it is strengthening coordination and positive interaction with other major States to build relations characterized by peaceful coexistence, general stability and balanced development. Such relations help to counteract unilateral economic sanctions (first of all, the United States). Secondly, it is government support for the sector of key technologies (for example, semiconductors and equipment for the production of microcircuits) as a counterbalance to the radical measures of the trade policy of some countries (the same USA). Thirdly, it is a direct dependence of national security on social stability. And finally, it is the promotion of the idea of a "new international order" as a natural way out of the impasse in the development of a unipolar world system dominated by the United States and other Western countries representing a tenth of humanity. A new type of global order will emphasize peace, development, equality and democracy. This idea of the Chinese leadership is very popular all over the world and stands in sharp contrast to the anachronistic principles of the current system.

The study was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research within the framework of the scientific project 20-011-00454  "Ensuring the rights of investors in the banking and financial sectors in the context of the digitalization of the economy in the Russian Federation and the leading financial centers of East Asia: a comparative legal aspect"