President
Obama and first lady Michelle with China President Hu Jintao
and first lady Liu Yongqing, before an APEC dinner on
Saturday.
Obama
spoke bluntly to Hu about Beijing's currency manipulation. Hu
retorted
that revaluating the yuan 'won’t solve America's problems.'
Global Times, People's
Republic of China
Americans Forget that
'No Empire Lasts Forever'
Is Washington
acting too aggressively because of its fear of China? According to this
editorial from China's state-run Global Times, America's relative
decline is nothing to get hysterical about. According to the newspaper, 'If
Washington were to act less defensively, it would remain a key global player.'
Every detail of the Obama Administration's
China policy centers on U.S. public opinion, including the "tough stance"
that has apparently gone politically mainstream.
In fact, a deliberately "tough"
America is hardly necessary, since China never doubted U.S. power. Instead, it
is Americans and Europeans who seem to believe in America's decline.
American national strength will
remain for a long time to come. But since the Cold War, U.S. attitudes have
been characterized by overconfidence. Some Americans have forgotten that no
empire lasts forever. They believe that superior firepower, a strong economy
and unmatched soft power will lead to perpetual dominance. While the U.S. never
expresses intent to "rule the world," its desire to do so is obvious.
U.S. public opinion can't bear a small country opposing the will of Washington
- and the stronger America gets, the more obscure the line between "leading
the world" and "ruling the world" becomes.
The ongoing crisis in the
country has stirred concern that the U.S. will lose its global position. So in
order to safeguard its global presence, the Obama Administration has expanded its
strategic deployments in the Asia-Pacific. This will be a burden and a drag on the
United States. The country isn't becoming weak precisely, but its strategic deployments
surpass its real capacity. During the Cold War era, American strength was
easily able to protect the Western world. But with its economy in decline, it
is no longer realistic for the U.S. to regulate global order as it did before.
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
America's attempt
to mobilize global political and economic resources to rebuild its capacity has
worsened the country's financial situation. In the past, Washington sought to
subdue the world with military and economic power. Today however, America pursues
its own national interests. Due to a worsening economy, the U.S. is becoming more
aggressive, both militarily and politically. But as Iraq and Afghanistan so
clearly demonstrate, these tactics are far from assuring success.
By exerting political
pressure on China, the U.S. intends to resolve its economic problems. U.S. congressmen
and politicians have taken up the role of CEO, blindly and politically interfering
in the marketplace.
Such a mission is empty and
ultimately doomed to failure. Perhaps America should change its attitude and learn
to accept the reality of a multipolar world. If Washington were to act less
defensively, it would remain a key global player. Ultimately, America's difficulties
are controllable and won't lead to its decline.
It is easy to understand why
the U.S. is insecure in the face of a rising China. But if its insecurity
becomes too extreme, it will sooner or later clash with its unrealistic
ambition to dominate the world. The globe doesn't belong to the United States, as
some of its leaders seem to think. Neither China nor any other country is to
blame for that.
