To Completely Remove the Shadow of the “Return to the Asia-Pacific” Strategy

As part of the foreign ministers’ meetings of the East Asia Summit, the foreign ministers’ meetings of the Second East Asia Summit will be held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is also planning to make an appearance. The New York Times commented that Clinton’s visit would send a message that the U.S. is striving to expand trade and investment in East Asia, thus easing the previous strong-military-presence impression the public was given about the “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy. The U.S.’ “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy is forcing countries in the region to “choose a side” between the two great countries: China and the U.S. Therefore, the situation makes the East Asian nations “extremely uncomfortable.”

The East Asian countries’ “extremely uncomfortable” feeling is a necessary reaction to the internal contradiction of the U.S’ “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy. If the U.S. only shows some gestures rather than taking action to solve the contradiction, the feelings of the East Asian countries will not be eased.

　　

In recent years, cooperation in East Asia has shown some thriving momentum. Peace, stability and development are the common hopes of the nations in the region. The U.S. is currently suffering from economic downturn; its major goal in adopting the “Return to the Asia-Pacific Region” strategy is to share the economic prosperity of East Asia and thus spur the U.S.’ exports and employment. The United States is the strongest economy in the world, and it has inextricable relations with East Asian countries’ economics and trade. America’s wise “return” will undoubtedly help to promote regional economic cooperation — the expectations of the East Asian countries. But the key to whether the U.S.’ “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy can be implemented lies in whether the U.S. is willing to invest more in accordance with the cooperation and development needs of the East Asian countries.

The practices of the U.S.’ “Return to Asia-Pacific” strategy shows that Washington has first chosen the strategy of military deployment. From the U.S.’ strategy of “Rebalancing the Asia-Pacific,” which reinforces America’s position in the East Asia, to the concept of the Cold War legacy of “Air Sea Battle,” the enhancement of American troops deployed in Australia and the recent joint military exercises of 22 countries around the Pacific Rim — all these actions send the public a message that makes people question the real purpose of the U.S.’ “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy. A direct consequence of these actions is the exacerbation of tensions in the Asia-Pacific region’s security, thus forcing countries in the region to choose a side between China and the U.S.

We cannot say that the U.S. is not aware of the inherent contradictions of its “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy. On one end, the U.S. tries to curb the rise of China, establish its existence in the region and form alliances; on the other end, the U.S. tries to share the economic prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region through the minimum investment while hoping for the maximum return, which is very unlikely. It seems that the U.S. has realized the seriousness of the problem; a spokesman from Washington recently said that Hillary Clinton would take the opportunity of attending the foreign ministers’ meetings of the East Asia Summit Regional Forum series to stress the importance of stable China-U.S. relations to the East Asia Summit’s countries.

Actions speak louder than words. The U.S. should take some practical and concrete actions next — participating in the East Asian economic cooperation and thus playing a positive role in deepening cooperation in the region. In the meantime, the U.S. should show the East Asian countries its sincerity in establishing stable relations with China. The key to the success of America’s “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy lies in whether the U.S. is indeed promoting cooperation rather than creating division in the Asia-Pacific region — a situation that the nations in the Asia-Pacific Region want to see the least.

Strengthening communication and engaging in mutually beneficial cooperation as well as positive interaction between the U.S. and China are in line with the common interests of the two countries and the countries in the East Asian region. China’s rise does not mean the U.S.’ fall. The broad landscapes on the two ends of the Pacific have enough space for the two big powers. China welcomes the U.S. to play a constructive role in Eastern Asia’s peace, stability and prosperity, but also hopes that the U.S. will respect and care for the significant interests and reasonable concerns of the Asia-Pacific countries. The U.S.’ “Return to the Asia-Pacific” strategy can only be widely recognized if it changes its attitude and abandons its zero-peace thinking.