context: The 61st Munich Security Forum was held in Munich on 14–16 February. 2025's report faced less criticism from international relations experts in the PRC compared to last year's, aligning with Beijing’s efforts to improve relations with the EU.
Xiao Qian 肖茜 Tsinghua University Centre for International Security and Strategy deputy director and Institute for AI International Governance vice dean reviewed the Munich Security Report 2025 in The Paper. This year's report
- analyses the international order in a sober and profound way
- judging by its title, is no longer as emotional as those of previous years, putting emotions aside and facing reality
- in the past few years, the titles of the Munich Security Reports reflected the anxiety of the Western elites
- this year's title 'Multipolarisation' is more descriptive, and the language is more calm and simple
- faced with the complex domestic and international situation, European elites have put aside their illusions and faced the reality
- reflects the views of all parties in a relatively balanced and comprehensive manner
- with regard to views on the multipolarisation, the report points out that views on it vary around the world, presenting both the optimistic and the pessimistic view
- has a sustained focus on the Global South
- starting in 2022, the Munich Security Forum has significantly increased its invitations to representatives of the Global South
- this time, the report describes the PRC, India, Brazil and South Africa in separate chapters, continuing the practice of focusing on and drawing in the Global South, and also makes several references to BRICS