[By Guancha Observer Network, Ruan Jiaqi]

One week has quietly passed. Immersed in his own得意忘形, the U.S. President Trump, who played a farce with absurd tariffs worldwide, still echoes with his extremely arrogant words "countries are all kissing my ass" (literal translation: "kissing my butt", American slang meaning "flattering"), which has deeply hurt traditional allies. Meanwhile, China continues to play a stabilizing role in the international community, consistently conveying positive signals of "win-win cooperation" to the world.

On November 11, The Wall Street Journal published an article stating that under Trump's leadership, the United States has alienated its "old friends" through an aggressive and unpredictable foreign policy. In stark contrast, China is emerging as a "global stability pillar."

U.S. media reluctantly admitted that although countries around the world are still watching China's performance, it is beyond doubt that at least China's call for respecting others and advocating cooperation is much more attractive than Trump openly shouting "all come and kiss my ass."

The article further pointed out that although America's allies in Asia and Europe may not immediately turn to China due to Trump's erratic policies, America's new zero-sum game view and its arbitrary policy-making practices have forced many allies to start planning "backup options."

Derek Grossman, a professor at the RAND Corporation's RAND Public Policy Institute, bluntly stated, "The more we walk down the path of destroying the international order, especially causing damage to the interests of our allies and partners, the more urgently they need to find alternative solutions."

"And there aren't many alternatives available; China is one of the main options," he added.

On March 30, the 13th China-Japan-South Korea Economic and Trade Ministers' Meeting was held in Seoul, South Korea. Source: China Ministry of Commerce website.

Looking back, The Wall Street Journal recalled that Hubert Vedrine, then French Foreign Minister, praised in 1999 that the United States had reached a level of strength unparalleled by any other country in history. This Western country possessed unmatched military power and dominated the global economy.

He particularly mentioned America's global soft power, believing that the U.S. "dominated the mindset, concepts, language, and lifestyle of the world."

However, the invasion of Iraq in 2003 exposed the limits of America's military endurance, and the financial crisis in 2008 completely revealed the vulnerability of its financial system. Today, thanks to Trump, America's global dominance faces its biggest challenge yet—Trump's administration has undermined the unity of Western military alliances, initiated a trade war with the entire world, and even abolished key soft power tools like foreign aid.

The Wall Street Journal believes this transformation has created opportunities for rising China, as China has long sought to challenge Washington's central position in the world order. As Washington's actions become increasingly unpredictable, even showing signs of complete loss of control, Beijing is increasingly strengthening its image as a "stabilization pillar."

The article analyzes that in the past, America and its allies shared what was called "common values," which always hindered China's progress in international affairs. However, after Trump turned to seek reconciliation with Russia, threatened to annex Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal, "this crucial bond is rapidly disappearing."

As former Australian Prime Minister Turnbull complained, "Trump does not share the values we have had in common with every one of his predecessors, whether Republicans or Democrats, for over 80 years. He doesn't even pretend to."

Meanwhile, under Trump's initial tariff executive orders, some countries suffered the harshest tariff demands. Many European countries' public opinion polls show that the United States is no longer seen as an ally, let alone a friend.

U.S. media further cited analysts as saying that during this transition process, China actually does not seek to replicate America's global alliance system. These analysts believe that part of the reason is that China has learned lessons from America's excessive expansion mistakes.

Zhou Bo, a researcher at the Center for Strategic and Security Studies of Tsinghua University, told U.S. media, "China's development space is undoubtedly larger now, but China will fulfill its responsibilities in its own way and gradually. This is not about filling the vacuum left by the U.S., because if you try to fill the vacuum, you will fall into a trap."

"China will continue to do the right thing. China wants to tell the world that trade is a booster for the development of all humanity, and every country needs to explore its own development path," emphasized Gao Zhikai, an international affairs scholar and deputy director of the Center for China and Globalization (CCG).

"No one wants to marginalize the U.S., but now it is the U.S. that is isolating itself from the rest of the world." Relations between the U.S. and its allies are deteriorating, producing actual negative impacts. According to U.S. media reports, under the constant harassment and detention incidents reported by the U.S. Immigration Bureau, the number of overseas travelers arriving at U.S. airports dropped by 11.6% in March this year. For a long time considered an important source of American global influence, U.S. universities have also been affected by the significant cuts in government research funding.

While America's market share in international education continues to decline, Trump's sudden cancellation of thousands of student visas has prompted foreign applicants to turn to more friendly countries like the UK, Canada, and Australia.

Clay Harmon, executive director of the industry organization promoting U.S. universities to international students, complained, "This undoubtedly sends a message: If your identity is clearly affected by the U.S. government's capricious and arbitrary policy changes, then coming to the U.S. may not be safe."

"No matter how the international situation changes, China's economy has a solid foundation for stable development and ample motivation to move forward," said Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry on April 10. "China has the ability and confidence to cope with various risks and challenges. We have strong leadership from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the remarkable advantages of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, the substantial foundation accumulated from sustained rapid development over the years, a super-large market and a complete industrial system, and the united efforts of 1.4 billion Chinese people. External shocks cannot change the fundamental stability, multiple advantages, strong resilience, and great potential of China's economy, nor can they alter the steady progress of high-quality development and the vigorous development of new productive forces in China."

"China's steady development injects precious stability into the turbulent world," Lin mentioned. "As the second largest economy in the world, China's contribution rate to global economic growth has remained around 30% for many consecutive years, making it an important engine of world economic growth. As the second largest consumer market in the world, China has the largest middle-income group globally. The continuously released consumption potential will increasingly convert 'Chinese demand' into 'world opportunities.' China is moving towards 'newness' in its economy. New technologies, new products, and new business forms are accelerating their emergence, continuously empowering all countries to share technological dividends. China firmly upholds the multilateral trading system based on rules, promotes the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, and makes the 'cake' of common development bigger and bigger. China practices its commitment to high-level opening-up, continuously creating a first-class business environment that is market-oriented, rule-of-law-based, and internationalized, ensuring that every percentage point of China's economic growth brings more benefits to enterprises of all countries."

"China is willing to work with all parties to adhere to true multilateralism, jointly oppose all forms of unilateralism and protectionism, and jointly resist risks and challenges, promoting inclusive and equitable economic globalization," Lin said.

This article is an exclusive piece by the Guancha Observer Network and cannot be reprinted without permission.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7492336821792211482/

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author, and you are welcome to express your attitude by clicking the "like/dislike" button below.