Together towards peace: China-US G2 proposal
- By Sumantra Maitra
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E-mail China.org.cn, January 13, 2016
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Together towards peace [By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn] |
A recent op-ed by Fu Ying, the chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's National People's Congress, in Financial Times sparked a war of words between academics in the West.
The op-ed in question was titled "The US world order is a suit that no longer fits" and it highlights current thinking of the Chinese foreign affairs establishment. It underscores common notions when the Chinese establishment talks about how the world has moved on and some powers are still trying to cling to the old ways with the old time geopolitical mindset when realities on the ground have shifted and moved on, reflecting new facts.
The op-ed also accuses the United States of having this mindset, and acting accordingly, which was reflective in the country's "meddling" in the South China seas, and highlights the alliance formations and trade pacts to boost U.S. led economic order, which, as the op-ed mentions, has contributed a lot to the world order, but is now out of shape.
This particular paragraph is prescient in the op-ed, which states, and I quote, "China has no ambition to lead the world. We have huge domestic challenges to tackle. And China believes that in future, world affairs have to be handled by countries working together. China needs to maintain stable and constructive relations with the US, while assuming more international responsibilities commensurate with its growing importance." Highlighting the mistakes of the U.S. during the Iraq war to support the color revolutions and the Arab Spring, it points out that trying to isolate China is also a major mistake and doesn't reflect the shifting realities in Asian geo-politics.
Responding to that, Daniel Drezner, professor of Tufts University sounded skeptical when he questioned if China is challenging the established liberal global order. According to him, China has got her plate full, with economic slowdown, rising rival alliance formations in Asia and military reforms, and therefore shouldn't be challenging the U.S. led order. He stayed clear of asserting that this op-ed might be ultimately "inconsequential," but if it not, he doubted if China would take Russia's way and try to destabilize the international order. He ended the note with pessimism, stating that as much as the first week of 2016 has been rough, it would be nowhere near as terrible as a full blown U.S. and China rivalry.
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