Growing Chinese Assertiveness in The World and US Response
Growing Chinese Assertiveness in The World and US Response
Growing Chinese Assertiveness in The World and US Response
Ever since the economic downturn two years ago, the single-most important theme in Sino-US
relations has been the emergence of a more ‘assertive’ China. China’s growing assertiveness has
been attributed to number of factors, but the most imperative of them is China’s quick economic
rebound from the global recession (in comparison to the struggling western powers), which
instilled a new confidence in the Chinese leadership in their dealings with the west. In the last
two years Beijing’s assertiveness and the hardening tone of its diplomacy has prompted a
rethink. From cyber attacks to obstinacy in Copenhagen, to voicing unhappiness over US
weapons’ sales to Taiwan, displeasure over Obama’s meeting with dalai lama, to criticizing US
presence in south china sea and opposing US-south Korea military exercises in yellow sea; from
delivering a harsh sentence on pro-democracy activist Liu Xiaobo and Google shutdown in
China have all led to growing tensions between United States and china.
The Chinese government is becoming more assertive in several major areas of relevance to the
United States: first, in defining and promoting the concept of ―core interests; second, with
regard to U.S. political and military behavior along China‘s maritime periphery; third,
concerning a variety of economic, trade, and finance issues, from so-called indigenous
innovation to global standards regarding reserve currencies; and fourth, with regard to several
international security-related issues, from counter-proliferation to climate change.
China’s assertion began with the notion of china’s core interests which were first mentioned in
the 1990s but has been explicitly stated many more times in the last few years. Many observers
interpret the use of this concept by the PRC government as an indication of strong (and growing)
Chinese assertiveness in the international arena, because in recent years the concept has been
more formally defined and included in official PRC (and at least one bilateral U.S.-PRC)
statements and documents to a greater extent than in the past; second, because some Chinese
officials and unofficial observers have apparently asserted that China‘s ―core interests are
essentially non-negotiable in nature, thus conveying a level of rigidity and perhaps militancy
toward whatever issue might be defined as a core interest; and third, because China is allegedly
steadily defining more and more controversial international issues as affecting its ―core
interests including U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, meetings between foreign leaders and the Dalai
Lama, and disputed territories in the South China Sea, thus by implication challenging an array
of foreign activities relating to such issues.
China’s modernization of its military and its recent testing of its stealth-fighter jets and
acquisition of missiles capable of hitting moving targets at sea point out to china’s assertion of its
military prowess. In the meantime, China has grown increasingly vocal in protesting and pushing
back U.S. naval operations in international waters off its coast. A group of Chinese vessels
intercepted an American surveillance ship, the USSN Impeccable, in the South China Sea in
March 2009 although the American navy had routinely deployed craft to monitor China’s
military activities. China then protested strongly over the joint US-South Korean military
exercise in the Yellow Sea and the USS George Washington aircraft carrier to be deployed in the
exercises although the U.S. navy has long conducted naval exercises in the Yellow Sea. After the
news was revealed in early June, the spokesman at China’s military of foreign affairs issued six
official protests with a successively tougher tone from calling to "maintain calm and constraint",
to expressing "concern" and "serious concern", then into "oppose" and "strongly oppose”.
Another area of Chinese assertion, which is of concern to the United States, is the economic
arena. China’s success in surviving such a precipitous downturn has given the government a
greater belief in its own resilience and the perception that the United States and Europe need
China more than China needs them. China’s currency policy of deliberately devaluing its
currency in order to maintain a trade surplus has been an irritant not only for US but many other
global economic players as well. China’s holdings of U.S. Treasuries have also shifted the
balance of financial power between Washington and Beijing, emboldening China to speak out
with criticisms of the way the U.S. economy is managed, and some analysts believe, to expect
greater deference from the United States on issues that China considers core interests. china’s
assertiveness on global platforms like the WTO have also been a sore in Sino-US relations, along
with its flouting of IPR’s and its ‘indigenous innovation’ policies regarding patents.
Although china has voted for imposing sanctions on Iran and North Korea in the UNSC to stall
their nuclear programs, it hasn’t imposed additional bilateral sanctions on them; in fact many
secret reports by the CIA even point out to some Chinese companies assisting in Iran and north
Korea’s missile building capabilities. China, although not happy with North Korea’s nuclear
program remains its largest trading partner and its foremost diplomatic ally. Not only, North
Korea, china maintains very good relations with many ‘rogue states’, like Iran, Sudan, Cuba,
Syria and Venezuela. According to many foreign policy experts, China’s foreign economic
assistance and investments have complicated U.S. and other Western efforts to curb human
rights abuses and promote democracy in places such as Angola and Sudan in Africa, Burma and
Cambodia in Southeast Asia, and Fiji in the Southwest Pacific.
China seems to be everywhere today, although it’s mostly for economic reasons, but china is
slowly but steadily building its inroads into most regions of the world today, even the ones
peripheral to its interests like Latin America, Africa and south-west pacific. However, china’s
influence and involvement is rapidly increasing in Asia and specifically Asia-pacific. Chinese
leaders also sought to establish “partnerships” or “strategic partnerships” with most of the
powers along China’s periphery (e.g., Russia, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
[ASEAN], Japan, and South Korea) as well as with other world powers. These partnerships
emphasized putting aside differences and seeking common goals. China was instrumental in the
founding of the SCO in 2000 and since then continues to be a critical player in what is called,
“the new great game” in central Asia. China has also played an increasingly important role in
other multilateral organizations like APEC, ASEAN and EAS. China asserts its power both
through bilateral ties and multilateral organizations (like its opposition of the US stand in climate
change talks in Copenhagen, though it somewhat cooled off its stand at Cancun in December
2010).
China’s soft power is also a part of its assertion strategy in international system. China is seen to
be trying to project soft power by portraying its own system as an alternative model for
economic development that does not require compliance with western standards. Economic
development without the restrictions and demands that come with political liberalization proves
attractive to some authoritarian governments ruled by elites. However, china’s soft power reach
is only limited and it does not match up to the potential of US soft power tools. China also
realizes that it has a limited capability and it’s not in its primary interest to challenge US
leadership in the world in a blatant fashion.
China’s growing assertiveness has resulted in Beijing feeling the effects of this pushback led by
America. United States is going through with its arms sales to Taiwan despite china’s warnings,
and president Obama even met Dalai Lama in 2010, much against china’s wishes. President
Obama and secretary of state Clinton have made many attacks on china’s faulty currency and
other economic and energy policies, and its support of rogue nations. United States is also
strengthening its relations with old allies in the region like Singapore, South Korea, Japan, etc. to
counter the Chinese influence. However, United States is also looking at its new partnerships
with India, Indonesia, etc. to counter china, who also share the US interest of checking china’s
hegemony in the region. The US is also actively seeking membership and participation in many
Asian organizations to maintain its primacy in the region. Although china has been successful in
forging closer relations with many countries in Asia( especially economically), it hasn’t been
able to undermine US importance in the region, as many Asian countries in east and south-east
Asia, see US as their formidable ally and partner and would have US presence in the region. .
Thus recent signs of assertiveness by the Chinese administration in relations with the United
States cannot be seen as reflecting a broader shift of power in Asian and world affairs where
China is supposedly superseding the United States. Closer examination of the Chinese posture
toward the United States and power dynamics in Asia shows that China has neither the will nor
the ability to challenge US leadership in Asia and the world.