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US-China relations
OpinionLetters

LettersWhat does US hot air over a Chinese ‘balloon’ mean for Hong Kong?

  • Readers discuss Hong Kong’s future amid fractious US-China relations, and a report on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline explosion

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Two white balloons float near the Chinese flag as American activist Reverend Patrick Mahoney protests against the Chinese government outside the Chinese embassy in Washington on February 15 after a Chinese “balloon” was shot down over the US last week. Photo: AFP
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While the whole world was wondering what US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s ice-breaking visit to Beijing might bring to the China-US relationship, a wandering civilian unmanned airship ensured disappointment.

What became clear is that US President Joe Biden has lost the ability to set the political agenda in the face of tough domestic politics. While the White House may have wanted to keep a low profile in the case of the airship, as soon as the opposition took up the issue, Biden made a U-turn. Tough diplomatic language was deployed, unwarranted force was used. One might expect more U-turns as the presidential election cycle begins.

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Although Biden paid lip service to “work[ing] with China” in his State of the Union address, confrontation will be the main theme of the China-US relationship.
What does this mean for Hong Kong? When many of us are celebrating the resumption of normal travel between the mainland and Hong Kong, or are following the row over a documentary, let’s not lose sight of the significance of this “balloon”. Normalisation of the bilateral relationship, political or otherwise, is not realistic.
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However, Hong Kong need not despair. Our traditional role as the communication channel between the East and West remains strong. But does “West” necessarily mean the traditional industrialised economies?

“East” and “West” are relative concepts. When the monk Xuanzang went to the West for the Buddhist classics, he covered South Asia and Central Asia, while Marco Polo in exploring the “East” also took in Asia Minor and the Middle East. Instead of sticking to the occidental geographical perspective of “Far East”, “Middle East” and “Near East”, we could adopt the oriental one of “Near West”, “Middle West” and “Far West”.

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