Chinese Diplomacy
By At some point in the last ten years, the People’s Republic of China discovered diplomacy. The increased appreciation for diplomacy on the part of the Chinese more or less mirrors the increased contempt for the same on the part of the United States. This should be troubling to hawks who want to find themselves in a new Cold War. Unfortunately, virtually none of China’s activity has been discussed in the US news media.
Via Elaine Supkis, we learn that the President Hu is moving to solidify good relations with the Palestinian Authority. Elaine views this as a touch more consequential than I do; in my view, the Chinese are creating a stick to point at Israel regarding some arms deals. Nevertheless, combined with the PRC’s newfound appreciation of the Vatican, India, Uzbekistan, and Russia, it’s a development of some interest. China, the authoritarian great power, is attempting to reach its goals through diplomatic means, while the United States increasingly eschews diplomacy in favor of military force.
Chinese diplomacy isn’t perfect. The anti-secession law passed at a particularly inopportune moment, given the apparent willingness of the EU to relax its arms embargo. But the Chinese leadership has managed even to reach out to the Taiwanese. The recent visit by the Nationalist party chief to the tomb of Sun Yat Sen has put Chen Shui-Bien in a bit of trouble. China has grown increasingly popular in south and southeast Asia, largely because it doesn’t care about human rights.
Will any of this matter? China, over the last ten years, has been able to significantly increase its military capabilities without ANY balancing behavior on the part of its neighbors. This is almost unprecendented, and must be considered a magnificent diplomatic achievement. Rather than spend diplomatic capital fighting unwinnable battles with the United States, like France, the Chinese have been happy to allow the US just enough rope to hang itself. Meanwhile, the US has managed to crack the Atlantic alliance and to create widespread popular opposition to its policies even in its closest allies.