Xi's speech on China's V-Day commemoration highlights aspiration for peace

President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Tian'anmen Rostrum before the parade marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, Sept 3, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's speech to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War Thursday highlighted China's aspiration for world peace, foreign experts have said.

By saying that "China will never seek hegemony or expansion" and "China will cut the number of its troops by 300,000," Xi delivered a strong message that China intends to be a peaceful power and will never seek hegemony, said Ted Galen Carpenter, a senior fellow for defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute in the United States.

Xi's emphasis on a win-win strategy as a new model of economic cooperation showed both a vision for the future and a very concrete possibility to overcome geopolitics, said Helga Zepp LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, an international political and economic think tank with headquarters in Germany and the United States.

Xi's speech represented a vision for a new paradigm for mankind and at the same time reminded the world that the maintenance of peace is the most precious good in our present time, she said.

"The statement of the Chinese leader to reduce the PLA's military personnel by 300,000 people just proves the sincere purpose of China's goal for world peace," said Sergey Minasyan, deputy director of the Caucasus Institute in Armenia.

In his speech, Xi said that the aim of the commemoration is to remember history and honor all those who have laid down their lives during the war, to cherish peace and also look towards the future, said Sarath Fonseka, leader of the Democratic Party of Sri Lanka.

China has developed thoroughly and it has contributed a lot towards the peace in the world and the strengthening of its relationship with the rest of the world, Fonseka said.

"China is not going to use its military power for political pressure on neighboring countries. This is also an extremely important and timely declaration by Xi Jinping," said Alexey Maslov, head of the Oriental Studies Department at the Russian Higher School of Economics Research University.

"The address of the Chinese president embodied clear messages for the international community on the incarnation of the values of peace, justice and security," said Rabie Abdul-Atti, a leading member of Sudan's ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and adviser to Sudan's Information Minister.

Mohamed Hassan Saeed, a Sudanese political analyst, told Xinhua that the Chinese president said that the best way to honor the heroes who gave their lives in the war against fascism was to avoid repeating the historical tragedy, which clearly reflects China's wisdom and political rationalism.

The Director of Inter-Institutional Cooperation of the Ecuadorian Armed Forces Joint Command, Miguel Rueda, expressed his support Thursday for Xi's call that the world adhere to a path of peaceful development.

"I consider it to be very important that, around the world, we avoid shedding blood as well as using vast resources to develop weaponry," Rueda said in an interview with Xinhua.