Time to drop illusions in Sino-US ties
- Source: Global Times
- [01:29 February 21 2010]
- Comments
US President Barack Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama, coupled with a series of China-US conflicts since the start of this year, has brought us back to the cold reality of bilateral ties between the two countries: lack of strategic trust and a clash of values.
Deeply interdependent economies and a new world scenario that requires closer cooperation have not ushered in completely new bilateral relations. Instead, the "Chinamerica" illusion has been blown away by ideological differences.
The continuing growth of China has driven the evolution of bilateral relations. Its expanding interests require China to be more open and assertive in diplomatic affairs, further affecting Sino-US interactions and complicating other regional political dynamics.
Though serving the purpose of irritating China, the meeting between Obama and the Dalai Lama was staged in a more calculated way. Many die-hard conservative US Congress members are changing their stances faced with the shifting power balance between China and the US.
The two countries have multiple frameworks and consultative mechanisms that nearly rule out the possibility of war. A cold war is also unlikely. Cooperation and competition will continue to shape Sino-US relations.
Reality allows for no illusions. Washington will not change fundamentally in a short period of time. The old issues will keep cropping up, including human rights, arms sales to Taiwan, the Dalai Lama and more. But meanwhile, Sino-US ties are also advancing. Relations will continue moving forward with periodic conflicts for a long time.
Given the clout of the two countries, and the political storms that sometimes erupt between the two, there are constant predictions that China and the US will inevitably move toward an all-out confrontation.
Looking back at the history of Sino- US relations though, it is apparent the two countries have sailed through much worse storms.
Each time, the huge interests at stake bring the two sides together to work out a solution.
The reason is simple: The Chinese and US governments put the conflicts between them in the broader context of national interests.
The depth and breadth of today's Sino-US relations are beyond what politicians could have imagined when the two countries first opened the door to each other three decades ago.
Solving old and new problems requires both political wisdom and compromise. The most significant bilateral relationship in the world should not suffer reverses.
