Opinion | With its ‘wolf warrior’ bullying tactics, China failed to learn from US path to global leadership

Name: Demand for free food rises in US as nation’s Covid-19 pandemic crisis deepens
Uploaded: 2020-11-27T17:00:21.000Z
Duration: 2 min 26 s
Description: Demand for free food rises in US as nation’s Covid-19 pandemic crisis deepens

Instead of being an altruistic leader providing badly needed assistance during the pandemic, China’s bullying and coercion have damaged its global standing

America’s post-war dominance was built on the success of its plan to help Europe and Japan rebuild. Such behaviour should be an example to China

Reading Time:3 minutes

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An Alitalia Boeing 777 with a shipment of Chinese medical equipment for Italy sits at Fiumicino International Airport in Rome on April 7. Efforts to improve China’s image through distributing medical supplies to countries hit by the Covid-19 pandemic have been overshadowed by ‘wolf warrior’ diplomacy and other diplomatic missteps. Photo: EPA-EFE

Gregory Mitrovich

Published: 1:00am, 28 Nov 2020Updated: 2:16am, 28 Nov 2020

What could have been a triumphant 2020 for President Xi Jinping and China might well be remembered as the year China blew it for its increasingly aggressive diplomacy and efforts to exploit a global health crisis it was uniquely placed to solve.

Instead of China playing the role of an altruistic leader providing badly needed assistance to countries devastated by the pandemic, Xi unleashed China’s “wolf warrior” diplomacy on the world. Beijing reportedly made delivery of aid contingent on public expressions of gratitude towards China, suppressed democracy in Hong Kong, sparked a crisis against India, and escalated threats to invade Taiwan.

The result, according to a recent report from the Pew Research Centre, was the collapse of China’s favourability ratings across the developed world. Negative sentiments ranged as high as 86 per cent in some countries.

Since China produces much of the world’s medical products, especially personal protection equipment (PPE), it was uniquely suited to act as the world’s benevolent hegemon. While blamed for being the epicentre of the pandemic when it first erupted, it also claims to be the first nation to contain the virus and recover economically.

By contrast, the virus has presented significant challenges to the United States and European Union, which failed to contain its spread even after shutting down their economies for long stretches. The US, crippled by the pandemic and alienated by President Donald Trump’s unwillingness to take the virus seriously, was reduced to receiving the world’s pity.

02:26

Demand for free food rises in US as nation’s Covid-19 pandemic crisis deepens

As the virus consumed the world’s attention, Beijing announced a new national security law for Hong Kong, eliminating the last vestiges of the “one country, two systems” principle and arresting pro-democracy activists.

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