U.S., not China, threatens foundations of much-needed multilateral cooperation: SCMP

HONG KONG, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The United States, not China, is threatening the foundations of multilateral cooperation when unity is needed most, said an opinion piece carried by the South China Morning Post (SCMP) recently.

The world faces a growing list of issues that require multilateral cooperation, including pandemic recovery, global warming, protection of biodiversity, and protection of global supply chains, it said.

Regarding global efforts to mitigate climate change, World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said recently that the WTO, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development share a duty to work together to find solutions.

But the authority of such foundation stones of multilateral cooperation, which have contributed to stability and prosperity over the past seven decades, is under threat -- not least from the architect of the system, the United States, said the article.

"As America has undermined the authority of the multilateral organizations that have underpinned our post-1940s stability, so it has demonstrated its unwillingness to participate internationally unless it sets the rules," said the SCMP opinion piece.

Noting that there is surreal distance between the U.S. talk and action, the article said the challenge that underlies its reluctance to realize its commitments to multilateralism is its unwillingness to allow others a meaningful role in setting multilateral rules.

"Since their inception, such bodies have been dominated by the United States, which has been happy to apply its rules to others while exempting itself when it suits," the article cited the Financial Times columnist Edward Luce as saying.

"America faces a choice between relaxing its grip on global bodies to encourage Beijing to stay in the game, or refusing to acknowledge China's rise and risk it exiting parts of the system altogether," said Luce.