International Relationship of East Asian - Assignment Example

QUESTION 2 INTRODUCTION Much has been made of the rise of China in the latter part of the 20th century and the meteoric progress that it has clocked in the first decade of this century. Many commentators have dubbed this century the Chinese century and point to the Olympic games of 2008 as the coming out party for China. Others see the rise of China as essentially detrimental to the interests of the western nations and point to the increasing aggressiveness that China has been displaying in recent times. In the aftermath of the Global Economic Crisis of 2008-’10, there has been renewed interest in what China does and more than ever, it has become the focus of increased attention. This paper seeks to answer the Question 2) in the course about whether China’s rise is a peaceful one and whether there is a need for the US and its allies to isolate China. The following sections argue FOR and AGAINST the debate question in turns and provide enough reasons to back up the debate points. CHINA’S PEACEFUL RISE It goes without saying that the rise of China has benefitted the global economy and the international trading system. Be it the manufacture of goods at cheap rates that has powered the global economy and fuelled international trade and led to the greatest economic boom in modern history or the fact that China has opened up its economy to western multinationals who find the prospect of marketing in such a huge and untapped market exciting, China’s rise has been concomitant with the peace dividend of the post-cold war era. The argument for the peaceful rise of China goes further with Globalization of the world and the interdependence which the phenomenon of the “Flat World” engenders on the world. Hence, in the interlocked and interdependent global economy, China has a stake in maintaining the status quo position and doing otherwise would hurt its prospects. Though the alarmists on both sides have pointed to a likely way between China and the US in the future, there is no evidence to back up their claims. China’s rise has been a relatively peaceful one and it might well be the first superpower-to-be that has not emerged because of a World War or Imperialistic tendencies but on the strength of trade and commerce. CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON? The rise of China unsettles many in the West and rightly so. From the time of the late 16th and 17th century when China was in a preeminent position in the international order to the present day, the Chinese have not forgotten the fact that the West is responsible for their slipping into poverty and the consequent loss of economic and military power. Most Chinese still hold the Opium wars and the chicanery accompanying that period as the darkest days for the Chinese nation. It is in this context of righting the historical wrongs that commentators in the west warn us against. Further, China’s aggressive nationalism as displayed whenever the issue of Taiwan comes into the spotlight and its intransigence in not allowing for peaceful resolution of this issue makes one view the rise of China with a wary eye. And despite talk of the huge appetite for goods and resources that the Western Multinationals want to supply, the fact that China is aggressively scouring for resources all over the globe and the Middle East and Africa in particular should send jitters down the spines of Western Leaders. The very nature of this economic imperialism which China practices means that it supports virtually most of the brutal and despotic dictatorships in Africa with an eye on the resources of their countries. These resources range from Oil to Iron Ore to Diamonds and Timber. Further, China has consistently backed Iran in its confrontation with the US and it is this fact alone that should convince the West to fear the rise of China. Hence, there is nothing peaceful about the rise of China and it is a sure fire recipe for disaster. A RESPONSIBLE INTERNATIONAL PLAYER The rise of China has been through clever negotiations and a spirit of give and take with the countries that it does business with. With reference to the recent Global Economic Crisis, it has become apparent that the world needs China as much as China needs the world. This is borne by the fact that China used its huge reserves of Foreign Exchange running into a Trillion or more US dollars to prop up the America currency and prevent an all out collapse of the International economy. This fact alone is proof that China is willing to be a responsible international player and instead of using its massive foreign exchanges to play havoc with the Global order (which Russia does), it uses them for the benefit of the system. The added point that needs to be mentioned here is that the global economy rebounded in 2009 in no small part due to the recovery in China and the willingness of the Chinese Central Bank to splurge on stimulus spending to kick-start the global economy. The fact that China is acting as the last consumer of resort as well as the last lender of resort to the global economy and the US in particular is proof of the fact that China is a responsible player in the international scene and would not do anything to upset the status quo. CHINA’S RISE AND THE DEMISE OF THE CAPITALIST SYSTEM The fact of China’s rise and its accumulation of foreign exchange reserves need not distract us from the point about how the rise of China would destabilize the existing international order and lead to the demise of the capitalistic system. What needs to be mentioned here is that the rise of China means adding hundreds of millions of consumers onto the global market that is already stretched to its limit by the demands placed on its carrying capacity. And the fact that Capitalism is the product of historical forces that rely on open markets and a merit based system of rewards that China despite all its opening up of its economy does not have. The curious combination of free market economy in an authoritarian political setup and the strange marriage between Coke and Communism can only lead to rising social tensions that if left unchecked would threaten the basis of China’s existence. Coupled with the fact that China has an abysmal record when it comes to human rights and an even more dismal record of censorship makes one suspicious of its so-called growth story. China has consistently thwarted attempts at hammering out a consensus on trade and environmental issues and has refused to behave in a way that befits a responsible player. On the contrary, China is being seen as more of a bully rather than a mature and helpful country. Given its record in resisting attempts to introduce measures to combat pollution, the rise of China has to be viewed as a threat to the western nations and the international order. ZERO-SUM GAME OR WIN-WIN SITUATION The international press is all about how the 21st century would be the time when “Chimerica” or the combination of China and America would rule the world. Further, there has been talk of “Superfusion” of the Chinese and American economies and how they are going to work jointly towards the good of the world. In this section, I conclude my debate by looking at the debate question and framing my response to both the sides and presenting my opinion. I believe that China like any other aspiring hegemon (economic or military) is seeking to dominate the world in the economic and military spheres. This is a historical trend that all aspiring superpowers have taken and that includes the US as well. It is in this context that one must view the rise of China as something that needs to be watched carefully without either going ballistic or passively accepting the outcome. What one needs is a careful and calibrated response to China’s growth and ensuring that the emerging superpower is indeed a responsible stakeholder in the international system. In conclusion, it is my view that China’s rise might not necessarily be a zero-sum game between the West and itself. On the contrary, by adapting new models of wealth creation and military détente, the US and its allies and China can manage the transition in an orderly and peaceful manner. Much depends on how far the US and its allies are willing to go to accommodate Chinese ambitions and how far China is willing to go to address the concerns of the West. The rise of China is the “story of the 21st century” and it portends interesting times for all the participants as well as the observers. QUESTION 1) It has been said that if not for the fact that the Chinese did not have extraordinary leadership during the late 19th century, the world would have seen a different China from what it was during the 20th century. Much like the Meiji restoration and subsequent revival for Japan, China could have undergone a similar trajectory if only its leaders were visionaries during that time. However, the counter argument to this would run along the lines of the perfidy of the imperial powers particularly Britain with its policies aimed at decimating the local economies of its colonies at the expense of growth in its own country that led to China suffering economically and politically. In this one page extended outline, I look at both sides of this debate question and present my opinion in the conclusion. China’s leadership in the 19th century was anything but visionary and this led to great tumult and chaos in the mainland as well as the heartland. There were frequent revolts by the peasants because of the diminishing returns they were getting on their land holdings and the fact that cheaper imports from industrialized Britain was hurting their chances of getting a fair price for their products. The Qing dynasty that was ruling China during this period tried its hand at modernizing China during this period. However, several factors seriously limited the extent of Chinas modernization.  In contrast to Japan, which was successfully industrializing in the late 1800s, there was no real central direction to coordinate these efforts.  Rather, provincial officials on a local level did them.  At the same time, they plunged China further into debt making it more difficult for the Chinese to fund any modernization programs. As noted above, the policies of the British towards its colonies resulted in providing captive markets for its products while procuring raw materials at throwaway prices because of its grip over local markets. These twin conditions produced a “double whammy” for the indigenous populace who could not cope with the influx of cheap products and looting of their raw produce as well. Further, the perfidy of the British in foisting an Opium war on China that weakened its population and its will to fight as well as the aftermath of the war that saw China getting hit by unfavorable terms of trade. Hence, it is the policies of the imperial powers and not lack of vision on the part of the Chinese leadership that contributed to China’s decline as a world power during the 1800’s. I tend to agree with some points in both the arguments and it is my view that it is the combination of factors (that I discuss below) that led to the decline of China. Further, the fact that the leadership was not particularly effective during that time added to the situation. In conclusion, it is my opinion that a combination of factors that included the underdevelopment of the native markets and the bypassing of the industrial revolution in China because of its static society and rigid hierarchical divisions coupled with the imperialistic attitudes of the British that contributed to the decline of China as compared with the rise of Japan under the Meiji restoration during the 1800’s. ONE PARAGRAPH FOR THE DEBATE The Imperial Court was responsible for the weakening of China’s position during the 1800’s. As compared to Japan where the Meiji dynasty showed the way with their nationalistic spirit and led the restoration of the country, the imperials (the Qing dynasty) ruling China were busy with their infighting and succession games and put themselves first rather the country. And the fact that the “Last Emperor” was born late and did not serve the purpose for which he was appointed and instead he was controlled by a cabal led to what can be called special interests in modern times taking over the role of ruling China. This led to the decay in governance and was responsible for China losing its way in the 1800’s. Works Cited Campbell, Zachary. Superfusion. New York: Bantam Books, 2009. Harney, Alexandra. The China Price. New York: The Penguin Press, 2008. Li, Minqi. The Rise of China and the Demise of the Capitalist World Economy. London: Pluto Books, 2008. Navarro, Peter. The Coming China Wars. New York: Pearson Education, 2007. Read More