China Talks Politics: New Face, Same CPC

China.org.cn invited two former Chinese Ambassadors to have a candid discussion on China's politics, both at home and abroad. Question topics include: public diplomacy, the Middle East and China's 2012 leadership transition.

Soft-power, the Middle East and the leadership change have all been hot topics in recent months. This is especially the case in light of China's growing economic clout as its involvement grows in terms of financing a bailout package for debt-stricken Europe.

China has ramped up its efforts to export Chinese culture abroad, signaling Beijing's discontent with foreign perceptions of the Chinese state. Western media outlets have seized upon China's recent use of its UN Security Council veto to block outside interference in Syria's civil unrest. Meanwhile, China accuses the West of hypocrisy, claiming that it is breaking international conventions that promise state sovereignty while at the same time promoting regional instability.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping took a highly publicized tour of the US in February, and many political analysts were quick to note that Xi's personality differs greatly from that of his predecessor, President Hu Jintao. There is hope in such circles that his leadership style will provide new opportunities for Sino-US cooperation. China was among the few nations to emerge relatively unscathed from the 2008 global financial crisis due to a tradition of protectionist economic policies, and is now being called upon by the international community to contribute more public goods for global consumption.

Few understand the aims of China's domestic and foreign policies better than senior Chinese civil servants. To that end, China.org.cn invited two former Chinese Ambassadors, Chen Ming Ming – former ambassador to New Zealand, the Cook Islands and Sweden, and Zhang Yuanyuan – former ambassador to New Zealand and Belgium, to have a friendly and candid discussion on China's politics, both at home and abroad. Question topics included public diplomacy, the Middle East and China's 2012 leadership transition.

Responding to a question on public diplomacy, Ambassador Chen said: "In my view, the term public diplomacy is quite a loose term. Broadly, it refers to the activities conducted by the government of a country, to audiences both overseas and domestic, to convey messages, policies, interests and goals."

The term public diplomacy has been in use since the mid-1960s and quickly began to replace the concept of propaganda as a means by which information can be provided by a government for foreign consumption. Traditionally speaking, the term "propaganda" has developed a negative connotation and can be linked to the US and former Soviet Union's battle for the hearts and minds of Eastern Europe and Asia.

Ambassador Chen believes that the term propaganda should be viewed negatively, and confirmed its pejorative connotation by saying: "To be frank, I do not like the term 'propaganda.' I do not think it has a positive connotation."

National culture is an important component of any successful public diplomacy initiative. The capacity of a government to promote its values and beliefs abroad is of strategic importance when interacting with foreign publics. Over the past 30 years, China has undergone a process of rapid transformation and industrialization. Although the past three decades have seen a tremendous increase in China's gross domestic product, it has come at a high cost: a declining sense of national identity. Many of China's cities are beginning to lose touch with their past, and many traditionally-styled buildings that have stood for hundreds of years are being demolished to make room for towering apartment units owned by highly profitable real estate investors.

Ambassador Zhang shared a personal example of the negative effects of relentless urbanization. He said: "China has such a proud past, and that past is quickly being done away with… The other day I used Google Earth and tried to locate my home village – it's near Xi'an. It used to be 40 kilometers north of the city center. Now it's part of Xi'an… The villagers are being told to stay put, and the developers will come to purchase their land, and before long they will be city-dwellers. I don't know whether that's a good thing." Ambassador Zhang concluded his point by reinforcing his belief that traditional Chinese practices need to be better preserved.

The Middle East, most notably Syria and Iran, has been making newspaper headlines as fears of regional instability and nuclear proliferation continue to grow. Ambassadors Chen and Zhang both reinforced Beijing's stance on nonintervention by referencing the UN's recognition of national sovereignty.

Ambassador Zhang said: "China's position on the unrest in the Middle East is that this is a matter of the people and countries in this area. The people and countries in the area should be left to manage their own affairs."

Ambassador Chen supported Zhang's position. He said: "I think this is a typical case of China's position being either misunderstood or misrepresented." He explained that China does not side with the Assad government at the expense of Assad's opposition, but rather emphasized that this was an internal Syrian issue, and therefore something in which China could not become involved.

On Iran, Ambassador Chen opined that Iran was entitled to pursue nuclear capabilities if it was solely for the purpose of peaceful energy creation. He also found it slightly ironic that Iranian nuclearization began in the 1970s under the former Iranian regime with the support of the US government. However, both ambassadors' support for Iran's nuclear program was specifically limited to energy creation. Both were adamant that Tehran should not pursue a weapons program. Ambassador Chen said: "The focus for now is to make sure that Iran does not make the wrong choice."

On his whirlwind tour abroad Xi Jinping offered a new look into the future leadership of the CPC. Western analysts hope that this new younger generation of Chinese leaders will provide enhanced opportunities for Sino-foreign relations. The media has described Xi Jinping as outgoing, charismatic and transparent, while characterizing his predecessor as more stoic and statesman-like. When asked what subtle or obvious changes this younger generation of politicians will bring, Ambassador Chen replied that while there may be a shift in personality, there will be little change in terms of foreign and domestic policy. He said: "I will expect some fine-tuning in policy making, but I do not see any profound shift in the direction of China's foreign and domestic policies."

Ambassador Zhang rebuffed the notion that China will soon own a controlling stake in world economic debt. He said: "China may be the number one country in terms of foreign exchange reserves, and a lot of this reserve is in the form of investment in American Treasury bonds, but to say that China has a monopoly or controlling position in this debt is an exaggeration." He also pointed out that the largest holder of American debt is, in fact, the American people.

Ambassador Chen concluded the interview by conveying a single message: "China is your partner. It is a partner you can trust, do business with and cooperate with."

China.org.cn correspondent Jonathan Calkins talks with Chen Mingming(M), the former Director-General of the Department of Translation and Interpretation at China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and former Chinese ambassador to New Zealand and Sweden, and Zhang Yuanyuan(L), the former Director-General of the Department of Translation and Interpretation at China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the former Chinese ambassador to New Zealand and Belgium in Beijing, March 1, 2012. [China.org.cn]