Asia, the West and the dialogue of civilizations
By Eugenio Bregolat |
chinawatch.cn |
Updated: 2019-06-28 18:46
The eminent historian Jonathan Spence said that is high time for the West "to stop looking to China through Western glasses". And the great anthropologist Franz Boas said that "societies have to be examined with the observer divesting himself of prejudices based on his own culture and background". Ignorance and strong prejudices about Asia,and especially about China, are frequent in the West, even among well-informed and sophisticated citizens. The West has to stop trying to impose its values, its economic or political systems, and to promote regime change in countries belonging to other civilizations, with different political cultures, different histories and different socio-economic conditions.
In February 1972, during his firs visit to China, US President Richard Nixon told Premier Zhou Enlai: "We believe in our principles, you believe in yours. We do not ask you to accept our principles, as you do not ask us to accept yours."
Kissinger wrote: "Nixon tried to moderate our instinct to know what is best for others." And asked: "Is the US mission the spread of democracy to China, or cooperation with China to bring about a peaceful world?"
Until China attained resounding economic success in the last few decades, the West held that only democratic societies can generate riches. China has proved this assertion wrong. For the first time a socialist country has delivered enormous economic growth, in fact the fastest and deepest economic development process in world history. In 40 years, from 1978, when Deng Xiaoping introduced his economic reforms, to 2018, per capita income grew from $150 to more than $10,000. China achieved this result with an original economic system, a mix of market and a strong public sector, and its own political system.
We have seen how the export of Western liberal democracy has not worked in a number of Middle Eastern countries. It is not enough to remove a dictator to transform a society into a flourishing liberal democracy. On the other hand, Western countries are losing their arrogance after they proved unable to anticipate and prevent the world economic crisis that started in Wall Street in 2008; after seeing the mother of all democracies corner itself with Brexit; after seeing the US reneging on the world order it had created and after self-doubt is corroding democratic countries which themselves criticize the decay and dysfunction of their own political system.
Relations among countries can be based either on cooperation and engagement, which lead to peace, or on confrontation and containment, which lead to conflict. In the nuclear age war among big powers would spell collective suicide. And lack of concerted effort to overcome collective challenges, like global warming, could be equally suicidal. Cooperation and engagement have as its indispensable underpinning geostrategic trust, which requires as its first condition respect for political and economic systems and cultures different from our own, giving up any attempt of regime change and accepting that it belongs to the people of each country to decide how they wish to be governed, in exercise of their sovereignty.
President Xi Jinping has called for "a new concept of international relations" and for "a community with a shared future for mankind". These ideas dovetail with those of Americans like Henry Kissinger. On January 12, 2009, he wrote in The New York Times:
"This generation of leaders has the opportunity to shape the trans-Pacific relations into a design for a common destiny, much as was done with trans-Atlantic relations in the immediate World War II period".
In 2012 Kissinger proposed the creation of a Pacific Community, with the US and China as founding members. Peaceful coexistence, multilateralism and multi-polarity should be some of the building blocks of the new concept of international relations which would lead a peaceful and prosperous world.
The author is the former ambassador of Spain to China.
The author contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.
All rights reserved. Copying or sharing of any content for other than personal use is prohibited without prior written permission.
The eminent historian Jonathan Spence said that is high time for the West "to stop looking to China through Western glasses". And the great anthropologist Franz Boas said that "societies have to be examined with the observer divesting himself of prejudices based on his own culture and background". Ignorance and strong prejudices about Asia,and especially about China, are frequent in the West, even among well-informed and sophisticated citizens. The West has to stop trying to impose its values, its economic or political systems, and to promote regime change in countries belonging to other civilizations, with different political cultures, different histories and different socio-economic conditions.
In February 1972, during his firs visit to China, US President Richard Nixon told Premier Zhou Enlai: "We believe in our principles, you believe in yours. We do not ask you to accept our principles, as you do not ask us to accept yours."
Kissinger wrote: "Nixon tried to moderate our instinct to know what is best for others." And asked: "Is the US mission the spread of democracy to China, or cooperation with China to bring about a peaceful world?"
Until China attained resounding economic success in the last few decades, the West held that only democratic societies can generate riches. China has proved this assertion wrong. For the first time a socialist country has delivered enormous economic growth, in fact the fastest and deepest economic development process in world history. In 40 years, from 1978, when Deng Xiaoping introduced his economic reforms, to 2018, per capita income grew from $150 to more than $10,000. China achieved this result with an original economic system, a mix of market and a strong public sector, and its own political system.
We have seen how the export of Western liberal democracy has not worked in a number of Middle Eastern countries. It is not enough to remove a dictator to transform a society into a flourishing liberal democracy. On the other hand, Western countries are losing their arrogance after they proved unable to anticipate and prevent the world economic crisis that started in Wall Street in 2008; after seeing the mother of all democracies corner itself with Brexit; after seeing the US reneging on the world order it had created and after self-doubt is corroding democratic countries which themselves criticize the decay and dysfunction of their own political system.
Relations among countries can be based either on cooperation and engagement, which lead to peace, or on confrontation and containment, which lead to conflict. In the nuclear age war among big powers would spell collective suicide. And lack of concerted effort to overcome collective challenges, like global warming, could be equally suicidal. Cooperation and engagement have as its indispensable underpinning geostrategic trust, which requires as its first condition respect for political and economic systems and cultures different from our own, giving up any attempt of regime change and accepting that it belongs to the people of each country to decide how they wish to be governed, in exercise of their sovereignty.
President Xi Jinping has called for "a new concept of international relations" and for "a community with a shared future for mankind". These ideas dovetail with those of Americans like Henry Kissinger. On January 12, 2009, he wrote in The New York Times:
"This generation of leaders has the opportunity to shape the trans-Pacific relations into a design for a common destiny, much as was done with trans-Atlantic relations in the immediate World War II period".
In 2012 Kissinger proposed the creation of a Pacific Community, with the US and China as founding members. Peaceful coexistence, multilateralism and multi-polarity should be some of the building blocks of the new concept of international relations which would lead a peaceful and prosperous world.
The author is the former ambassador of Spain to China.
The author contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.
All rights reserved. Copying or sharing of any content for other than personal use is prohibited without prior written permission.
