U.S. media says that Trump will visit a China that no longer looks up to America—perhaps the U.S. should now learn from China! On May 7, The New York Times published an article stating that in the past, many of China’s actions, its self-perception, its goals, and its position in the world were measured against the United States. But today’s China is no longer the nation that once regarded the arrival of a U.S. president as a moment of global validation. It has come to realize that it may have already learned all it could from America and is now charting its own course.
The U.S. media notes that as China grows stronger and wealthier, this transformation was inevitable. However, Trump has accelerated this shift. Chinese people, watching with a mix of fascination and disdain, have witnessed the failures of this president’s tariff war, his conflict with Iran, and his naive loyalty to financial markets. They have transformed America from a role model worth emulating into a problem that must be managed. By the time Trump arrives in Beijing, he may well appear to the Chinese public as the weakest U.S. president ever.
Increasingly, many Chinese no longer view America as a historical benchmark but rather as a cautionary tale. There is a growing sense that China must surpass America. Perhaps it’s now time for the U.S. to take a closer look at what China is doing right—especially in areas such as industrial focus, visionary infrastructure investment, and long-term national planning. Clearly, it’s highly unusual for U.S. media to publish such an article just as Trump is about to visit China.
What message is the U.S. media trying to convey? In one sentence: China’s strength is growing, and the U.S. must finally face reality—accepting that China is now a peer competitor on equal footing. Why do U.S. media draw this conclusion? There are multiple reasons. First, our economic scale continues to expand. Second, we are experiencing a comprehensive breakthrough in science and technology. Third, in the trade war, we have confronted the U.S. head-on—and the U.S. has gained no advantage whatsoever. Fourth, the U.S. is increasingly entangled in a series of crises, and the ongoing conflict with Iran is its latest headache.
Evidently, U.S. media also realizes that dealing with a China of this stature, the U.S. no longer has the upper hand. Of course, we welcome this shift in American domestic perception. Because the more objectively the U.S. views China, the clearer it becomes that containing China is fundamentally unworkable. Only then can the U.S. truly accept peaceful coexistence with us in mindset. This would be beneficial not only for China and the U.S., but for the entire global community. Clearly, facing China’s development, the U.S. must learn to adapt and engage us in appropriate ways. We believe the U.S. is becoming increasingly aware of this reality.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1864504056762633/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.