This article appeared earlier in e-magazine Business Trends Asia (www.businesstrendsasia.com)
Why China will not save the world
The "West" is trying to push China into the limelight as saviour of a world reeling from the chaos of the global financial crisis. However nothing in China's recorded history of almost 5,000 years points to a structural Chinese desire in a world outside its immediate cultural sphere of influence.
China’s recorded history of almost 5,000 years does not cover China as is known today. The nation state China with it’s current borders exists since 1950 (1949 conquering of all China by the Communists and 1950 the inclusion of Tibet). Before the fall of the last Imperial dynasty, the Qing, the current state of Mongolia was part of China as well for almost 400 years.
The largest territory once governed by China’s rulers was during the Yuan dynasty at the end of the 13th century AD when the country’s borders stretched across southeast Siberia and included the Korean peninsula besides most of the territory of modern day China.
For a large part of this 5,000 year recorded history China consisted of a number of fragmented independent states with constantly fluctuating borders. These Chinese states and dynasties where most of time located in the country’s eastern half. During certain periods (Yuan, Tang and Qing) China’s territory expanded westwards but shrank back again to the east when new rulers took over.
Some dynasties would open up China (or the territory they ruled of what is now called China) during some period of their rule e.g. the Tang (7th to10th century AD) and the early Ming (14th and 15th century AD) but for large periods of time the country was basically closed to foreigners. Under China’s last imperial dynasty, the Qing, its borders expanded westwards but foreigners remained unwelcome and the country was basically forced open in the 2nd half of the 19th century by the European world powers of that time.
When the communists took over China in 1949 the country was once again sealed off from the outside world. Only in 1978/1979 opened the government the doors again. The current state of open interaction with the world at large covers a mere 30-year period and cannot be considered as the “natural order of things”. Chinese society does not have a natural regard for other cultures and peoples as the current standard Cantonese word for Westerner still shows which is the negative Kwai Loh or Foreign Devil.
Chinese rulers have always been much more concerned with domestic policies and trying to maintain social stability as this has always proven to be China’s Achilles heel during the past few thousand years. The current authorities form no exception to this rule. Their first and foremost concern is how to prevent the current global economic crisis from damaging Chinese society and how to prevent social unrest and instability.
China’s authorities have never been concerned about the opinion of the outside world and never expressed a serious interest in the position of other countries. On the one hand it means China is not overly interested in overpowering neighbouring nations but on the other hand the country is hesitant to use its power and influence “for the greater good of mankind”.
China will stimulate its domestic market for the benefit of Chinese companies not foreign corporations and its manufacturers will continue to export their cheaper products around the globe. The exchange rate of the Yuan will reflect China’s needs not Europe’s or those of the USA.
A senior Chinese economic policy advisor has already raised the suggestion that the Chinese government should abandon the US-Dollar as its main foreign reserve currency. The fact that Chinese government officials dispelled this idea cannot be considered as a commitment to global cooperation and support of the US government and US economy. The real message lies in the circumstance that this senior economic adviser has been allowed to voice this opinion in public and on a world stage. This means that the Chinese government is actually contemplating this decision, that it will do what is in the best interest of China and will undertake the action which ensures internal social stability. How this will affect the world at large is of little importance.
A culturally deeply ingrained mistrust of foreigners and strangers in general, the pre-occupation of any Chinese government over the past few thousand years with maintaining internal social stability and their reflex to seal off the country when the domestic situation seems to spiral out of control are not characteristics of a globally engaged nation.
