[Haiwainet.cn]Song Wei: Why do you say that China is the defender of the existing international order?(Excerpt)

In recent days, it is believed that as China grows in strength, more and more countries will become "revisionists" or "challengers" in the international system. There are at least two mistakes in these viewpoints. First, according to research conducted by international relations scholars, the threshold for the challenger’s strength should be over 80% of the hegemonic power, but at present, China’s total economic output is still only about 63% of the United States. It does not pose challenges; second, revisionist countries or challengers are countries that are dissatisfied with the existing international order. In fact, an increase in strength does not necessarily mean that it will be dissatisfied with the existing order. The international order includes the two parts of principle and power allocation. Emerging powers that are satisfied with the existing principles and regulations need only gain more say; for hegemonic powers, as long as emerging powers do not challenge the existing principles and norms, then the transfer of some powers is generally acceptable. From these two aspects, China is not a so-called "revisionist" or "challenger."

So why is China satisfied with the post-World War II international order? Does the formulation of "new international relations" mean that the international order established after World War II is "old international relations"?

The Open International Economic Order and China's Economic Development

However, the post-war international economic order is open, which means that developed countries are not the only beneficiaries. From the perspective of the international economic order, with the rise of emerging powers, increased productivity, and expanded markets, its position in free competition will be improved. If emerging countries can integrate into the international economic system and improve their technological capabilities and commodity competitiveness, they can also become strong players in international economic competition. On the one hand, the norms of free trade have generally provided China with a vast export market, which is one of the major driving forces for China’s economic development over the past 30 years. Moreover, the free trade norms represented by the WTO mechanism have taken care of it to some extent. Developing countries reflect the principle of balance; on the other hand, sometimes the norms of free trade and market economy seem to be detrimental to China's economic expansion, but in essence, we need to further meet the requirements of the regulations, such as stricter compliance with intellectual property rights norms. The reason why Deng Xiaoping advocated reform and opening up was because "To achieve the four modernizations, we must be good at learning and get a lot of international help. The introduction of advanced international technologies and advanced equipment is the starting point for our development." The experience and lessons of the more than 30 years tell us that closing the door to engage in construction will not work and will not develop."

Balanced international political order and China's international status

The result of the principle of fairness is that in an international political system with strong equality, the United States and Western countries do not necessarily have advantages, and China often occupies a majority because it stands with developing countries. For example, although the United States strongly opposed UNESCO's acceptance of Palestine, Palestine was still approved on October 31, 2011. Another typical case is the United Nations General Assembly. From the 1970s onwards, the UN General Assembly has become a forum for the Third World to attack US and Western colonialism and imperialism.

The principle of efficiency has also been embodied in the post-war international political order, especially in the more important international political and economic mechanisms. This makes the international political order relatively balanced. Big countries take on more responsibilities and enjoy more rights. From this perspective, China is also a beneficiary of efficiency principles. China enjoys the rights as a big country in the UN Security Council and other post-war international political mechanisms. This right is also reflected in the decision-making process. China is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and has also played a major role in the G20 after the outbreak of the global financial crisis in 2008.

Jiang Yi’en once wrote that “from the late 1980s to the 1990s, China supported many systems that essentially safeguarded the status quo of global economic and political order (such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the UN Security Council, etc.). In fact, Chinese leaders oppose any reform plan of the UN Security Council that may weaken the power of the five nuclear powers. China is trying its best to prevent U.S.-led NATO’s use of “humanitarian intervention” in Kosovo as a means of using force outside the UN. It is said that China may be the most powerful defender of the Westphalian sovereignty system that has organized international relations for centuries and it opposes any effort by liberal internationalist countries to intervene in the internal affairs of sovereign nations. In this sense, China is a conservative force."

Through 40 years of development since the reform and opening up, China has gradually become the defender, builder, and beneficiary of the existing international order from the opponents and exclusionists of the post-war liberal international order. Through the integration of the liberal international economic system, China has continuously obtained the funds and technologies it needs from the wave of economic globalization, and has become the most important export market and import source for major economies in the world. This is precisely the most powerful motivation for economic development in China. China firmly supports the principle of sovereign equality in the international political order, the principle of national self-determination, and the principle of collective security, and opposes unilateralism and power politics. All these indicate that China is generally satisfied with the post-war international order and is the defender and improver of the international order, but it is by no means a challenger. In sum, in terms of Qin Yaqing's words, “the relationship between China and the international system has undergone a process from negative opposition to positive identification. It has also gradually transformed into an identification and initiative with challenging and revolutionary countries outside the international system to state-of-the-art countries that integrate into the existing international system and play a major role".

This shows that the "new type of international relations" put forward by China and the "international order" after World War II represents the relationship of inheritance, development, and promotion. It is not an overall opposition and conflict. The "old-type international relations" we mentioned are more naked power politics before World War II than the new type of international relations represented by the UN Charter.

Full Text click: http://nads.ruc.edu.cn/displaynews.php?id=5966

(The author is the research fellow at NADS and professor of the School of International Studies at RUC)