US-China Relations - 173. page

International Herald Leader, a newspaper under Xinhua, published an article by Zhang Jie, Director of the Department of Security and Foreign Relations, Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Science. Zhang argued that it is not the “G2” era yet. As to leading and affecting the global affairs, U.S. still has the dominant power and does not want to have an equal share with China. China has a low per capita GDP and does not have the capability to lead the world on many areas including technology advancement, innovation and cultural influence. China should still exercise a big country’s responsibility though it’s not the leader. [1]

On the same day, International Herald Leader also published another article arguing that the meaning of “G2” has been shifted. The concepts of “Chimerica” and “G2” were created with the focus on economy. But “G2” was later transformed to mean that both U.S. and China jointly manage the global affairs, thus becoming a form of “China Threat” to both U.S. and other countries. [2]

Sources:
[1] International Herald Leader, May 26, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-05/26/content_11435934.htm
[2] International Herald Leader, May 26, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-05/26/content_11435900.htm

According to comments in Study Times, the United States is applying its smart power policy to its U.S.-China relationship. The article states that smart power has three major characteristics: it is rational and objective; it is comprehensive and very “pragmatic;” and finally, it has a high operability. “Almost all of those who have proposed and developed the ‘smart power’ policy are politicians who have given full consideration to the needs of front-line diplomatic practices, thus making the policy highly operable.” According to Study Times, the record of Obama’s first 100 days indicates that smart power has been adopted to guide U.S. foreign strategy.

Source: Study Times, May 18, 2009
http://www.studytimes.com.cn/WebPage/ny1.aspx?act=1&id=2647&nid=9615&bid=2&page=1

China Youth published an article titled “The Flu Wreaks Havoc, but the U.S. Media Pretend They Haven’t Seen it” on May 15, 2009. The report said that U.S. media covered little about the influenza A(H1N1) flu, also called swine flu, though U.S. has already confirmed more than 3,500 infection cases. It criticized U.S. media for using a double standard in its reporting: it has extensive coverage and follow-ups for SARS when it was spreading in Asia, but kept quiet about swine flu when it is in the U.S. in the fear of hurting travel business and tourism and creating public anxiety. [1] [Editor’s Note: In 2003, China was criticized by the international community for covering up the SARS epidemic in China and providing unreliable information to WHO staff who went to China to monitor the spread of the disease.]

The Epoch Times reported on May 20, 2009, according to insider information from China’s security system, Chinese media have been providing intensive coverage of A[H1N1] flu to Chinese. The exaggerated reports of the U.S. and other countries’ “swine flu epidemics" make many in China feel that other countries are in great danger. On the surface it is for public health, the underlying reason is to use it as an excuse to declare a state of emergency in case there is a sudden event beyond the CCP’s control. This year is the most challenging year for the CCP, as it marks the 10th anniversary of the CCP persecuting Falun Gong, the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Massacre, the 50th anniversary of Dalai Lama leaving Tibet, and 60th anniversary of the CCP’s rule in China. [2]

Source:
[1] China Youth, May 15, 2009
http://zqb.cyol.com/content/2009-05/15/content_2667711.htm
[2] Epoch Times, May 20, 2009
http://epochtimes.com/gb/9/5/20/n2532456.htm

On the tenth anniversary of the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Yugoslavia, Xinhua started a blog in memory of the incident and to ask the Chinese people not to forget about the past.

The blog had the following in the introduction: “Today is the ten year anniversary of the attack on our embassy in Yugoslavia. Ten years ago on May 8, US air force dropped 5 bombs to attack China’s embassy in Yugoslavia resulting in the death of three Chinese reporters… (The attack) enraged of tens and millions of Chinese college students and patriotic civilians. Looking back on the attack and how the US government handled themselves, it is not inappropriate at all to describe them as ‘arrogant’ and ‘barbarian.’ The attack was arrogant and the after attack was even worse. It was the tremendous amount of sincere effort from the Chinese people that has reconciled the cooperation between the two countries. But the US is still on guard against us and the underlying hostility still remains… We shall not forget the past as many incidents are worth remembering…”

Source: Xinhua, May 8, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2009-05/08/content_11334962.htm

A commentary by the Outlook Weekly calls the meeting between Obama and Hu one of the highlights at G20. Two major milestones were achieved from the meeting, the article cited, “building a positive, cooperative and comprehensive relationship in the 21st century” and “establishing a Strategic and Economic Dialogue group”. It named the meeting a historic event which “has set a stage and tone of US-Sino relationship in such a swift and highly efficient manner and carries a significant meaning on the future development of both sides”.

The article also warned a few obstacles along the path including the actions taken by US congress on Tibet and Taiwan issues, Pentagon’s “intention to stir up the South China Standoff” as well as some “anti-China force continues to embark on the trades and currency issues”.  It concludes that the future of US Sino relationship remains a major task for both countries to resolve.

Source: China News, April 7, 2009
http://chinanews.com.cn/gn/news/2009/04-07/1634477.shtml

The New York correspondent of Xinhua reported on April 2, 2009 that some Western media have wrongfully interpreted the March 23 statement by China’s central bank as a challenge of the U.S. dollar. The People’s Bank of China released this statement by Zhou Xiaochuan, the central bank’s governor, on March 23, 2009. It calls for replacing the dollar as the dominant world currency and creating "an international reserve currency that is disconnected from individual nations and is able to remain stable in the long run." 

Source: Xinhua, April 2, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2009-04/02/content_11120020.htm

Xinhua’s Special Military Commentator said that dispatching USS Chung-Hoon to South China Sea is a friendly gesture by the US DOD. It demonstrates US “hedging” strategy of both “engaging” and “deterring” China.

Xinhua said that selecting Chung-Hoon itself is a “well thought-out decision” by the US Pacific Command. First, instead of choosing a ship from the nearby Japanese Sea it chose Chung-Hoon, which was far from the incident water and needed 4 to 5 days to get there. Those 4 to 5 days gave US and China enough time for diplomatic maneuvers. Second, the ship itself has an “historical relationship” with China as it accompanied the Chinese Navy’s visit to Pearl Harbor in 2006.

Source: Xinhua, March 23, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-03/23/content_11056685.htm

Obama must take action to ensure Chinese assests are secure in the United States, says a March 19 editorial in the International Herald Leader, a subsidiary of Xinhua. On March 13, Premier Wen re-iterated China’s request that the U.S. administration honor its promise to ensure Chinese assets are secure in the United States. In response, Obama announced that investors from the world including China should have absolute confidence in their investment in the United States.

The editorial comments that unless Obama takes concrete action to reassure China, his promise is nothing but lip service. Specifically, China should leverage its position as the largest debtor and negotiate a much higher return with the U.S. Treasury for U.S. government bonds. China should tie the appreciation of the RMB with the purchase of U.S. government bonds to resist further pressure from the U.S. on RMB appreciation.

Source: Xinhua, March 19, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-03/19/content_11034722.htm