Media reports have been enthusiastic to do stories about reviews and anticipations at the turn of each year and, at the start of this year, China has naturally become a popular topic for heated discussion in Western media.
For instance, a set of articles released recently by the British newspaper "Independent" website at www. Independent, Co. UK refers to China as the world's newest superpower and No. 3 economy, with a greatest consumption demand and a motive power for economic growth, its economic contribution is overtaking that of the United States, and the nation's innovative culture has been going global, and so on.
Meanwhile, an article entitled "The Rise of China and the Future of the West" signed by G. John Ikenberry from the January/February 2008 issue of the Foreign Affairs journal in the U.S., notes that "China's rise will inevitably bring the United States' uni-polar moment to an end," and "the rise of China will undoubtedly be one of the great dramas of the twenty-first century", and "China's extraordinary economic growth and active diplomacy are already transforming East Asia."
The United States' "uni-polar moment" will inevitably end, as the Western-oriented world order is replaced by one increasingly dominated by the East, the article acknowledges. But the U.S.-led international order can remain dominant even while integrating a more powerful China. Furthermore, there are such other notions as those implying that China is a superpower that is both wealthy and poor and powerful and weak.
In view of such careful observations, the "China topic" prevalent in Western media this year has indeed multi-tendencies, and in the words of a vivid Chinese metaphor: "a hundred flowers blossom and a hundred schools of thought contend," whereas the hues of emotional and morally self complexity are somewhat dim. Some opinions give high evaluations while others represent underestimations, differing widely from person to person.
With regard to appraisals from overseas, people in China should look at them with a usual mindset, as China is as it is today with its obvious reality there, so we should neither be cocky because of high appraisals, nor feel inferior with given underestimates. As people in China, we have personally witnessed its progress and shortcomings, and come to understand that we can only scale heights one by one in a real down-to-earth manner.
As the value and price of a given commodity are not identical in the sense of economics, so the price will ultimately return to its real value, and fluctuate can only be inflicted centered or based on its value. As for a nation, its genuine intrinsic value lies precisely in the very quality of its nationals, the in-built vitality of its economy as well as the correct strategic choice; only these qualities are cited as the orientation we should strive for, instead of paying only overdue attention to assessments given by the outside world.
The sharp appreciation of Japanese yen during the mid 1980s caused Japan's weak economic performance in the 1990s, and the real estate prices in Tokyo in mid 1980s were more than double the property price in the entire United States. And so the Japanese economy, however, turned strained and languid for 18 straight years after its real estate and financial bubbles popped. There are also similar lessons to learn from "Money Games" occurred in other parts of Asia then. So we should be sober-minded with similar pressures or situations around at present, and China should especially have a sense of anxiety and be ready to cope with any possible, similar misfortunes and unexpected incidents.
Three full decades ago, China started to pursue the national policy of reform ad opening itself to the outside world. This epitomizes its involvement in the global setup. In the context of the international community, it has all along persevered in "not seeking hegemony", whereas "a harmonious world" stands for its aspiration vista for this global setup.
With respect to irrational international orders, China shall resort to methods of stepping in its relevant reforms and having consultations with other countries on an equal footing, so as to prompt these orders to reflect the shared interests of humankind better still with more hallmarks to show the universal fairness and justice.
By People's Daily Online and its author is Huang Qing, a PD desk editor
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