China: We Won’t be Diverted by US/Japan Geopolitics

China’s Party newspaper Global Times editorialized on Wednesday that the US and Japanese efforts to draw China into a geopolitical confrontation will not work, and encouraged the government to not be diverted, but to proceed with win-win policies.

The editorial reviews Abe’s cooperation with Russia, Obama’s “Pivot” and his upcoming trip to the ASEAN Summit in Laos, and the Indian Defense Minister’s current visit to Washington, noting that western pundits describe these moves as efforts to pull countries away from their cooperation with China. “China seems to be positioned in the center of the geopolitical maneuvers by the US and Japan,” the editorial says. “But Beijing should not let its attention be led by the two. Geopolitics in the 21st century is not like the traditional game of ‘Go’ where every piece aims to encircle the others. The outside world has miscalculated geopolitics by interpreting China’s diplomacy.”

It notes that China is not “encircling” the US when they establish ties with Cuba and Mexico and other Latin American nations, nor challenging India by working on development projects in Sri Lanka.

On the other hand, they continue: “The US and Japan have the motivations to initiate a geopolitical competition with China, but China will not be made to give in. Myanmar is a neighbor of China that Washington and Tokyo have been particularly keen to court. Nonetheless, after Aung San Suu Kyi’s recent China visit, the relationship between China and Myanmar is steering in the opposite direction to the wishes of the US and Japan. The arbitration case around the South China Sea, a contention point between China and the US, will eventually prove beneficial for China.”

They conclude: “China has just become a real major power. China needs to develop modern national defense, and at the same time keep long-term economic vitality and expand its vision. The Chinese military should become so strong that we can withstand any external military pressure. The Chinese economy should retain its momentum of long-term prosperity that will surpass that of the US. This is the primary task for China, and we should not let our attention be diverted by the clamorous geopolitical rivalry in the Asia-Pacific.”