More Pros Than Cons to the American Factor in Asia

Recently, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said in a speech delivered in the U.S. that it was a “serious mistake” for the East Asian Community to keep the U.S. out of it, and he hopes the U.S. will play a greater role in maintaining regional balance. We should analyze dialectically the U.S.’s involvement in Asian affairs and the issues of interest that exist in Asia related to the Chinese.

First, we will look at the advantages of the presence of the U.S. in Asia. In the process of establishing the East Asian Community, the American factor plays a role in maintaining regional security and stability that cannot be replaced by other countries. This is mainly seen in the following aspects.

One is that U.S. presence in Asia keeps Japan in check. Objectively speaking, the presence of American power in Asia suppresses Japan’s political and military superpower urges and has achieved a balancing effect for many years. This has allowed Asian regions to develop their individual economies in peace. China has also benefited from this. Moreover, it is clearly seen in the present reality in Asia that this region has yet to establish an effective regional security institution and there are various elements of instability in the region. There isn’t a strong sense of belonging among individual nations in East Asia as a whole. More often than not, each nation has its own interests in mind and there isn’t one country that can lead in regional affairs. If Asians cannot resolve their own problems, such as the North Korean nuclear problem and conflicts over ocean rights, then external intervention would be logical and perfectly normal.

Second, the U.S. presence in Asia has a stabilizing effect on the situation on the North Korean peninsula. The North Korean nuclear issue has increased the complexity of the Asian regional situation. North Korea’s one-sided withdrawal from the six-party talks has led to a standstill in negotiations. Under such circumstances, South Korea and Japan initiated the “five-party talks” to impose sanctions on North Korea. China, however, remains insistent on a “six-party talks,” and the U.S. also maintained that talks on North Korean security and stability issues, especially the North Korean nuclear issue, should proceed in six-party talks.

Third is that U.S. presence in Asia contains the “Taiwan independence” powers. We must be clear that, on the issue of Taiwan, the U.S. does not wish for Taiwan to be truly independent. Why is that so? The U.S. is an ocean rights nation and is concerned about rights to control water passages. To the U.S., Taiwan’s role is to keep China from going out to sea and stopping Japan from moving south. At the same time, the U.S. also does not want Taiwan to be its burden and hopes that mainland China can keep Taiwan in check, but does not want mainland China to control Taiwan.

Fourth is that the U.S. hopes China will be actively involved in issues concerning politics, economy and security. In recent years, be it political, economic or security issues, the U.S. has hoped for China to be actively involved and has taken the initiative to invite China to do so. For example, it would have been unimaginable if the U.S. had not supported and been involved in the six-party talks that China established on the North Korean peninsula.

After that, we should take a look at the disadvantages of the American factor for the Chinese in Asia. Throughout U.S. involvement in Asia-Pacific affairs, there has always been a side of it that wanted to hold back China’s rise to power. This is undeniable. This could be due to the difference in values between the two nations. The U.S. is worried that once China becomes a superpower, it will pose a threat to the U.S., as well as to the Asia-Pacific region. What is more, the U.S. is also using the issue of Taiwan to restrain China. The U.S. has always hoped to maintain mainland China’s military balance and its current status by selling arms to Taiwan and to use Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines to block China from entering the Asia-Pacific. Apparently, the U.S.’s present Asian strategy is to let Asians fight Asians.

In summary, the American factor in Asia, overall, has more pros than cons for the Chinese. Therefore, why should China reject an American presence in East Asia? China should not have overreacted to what M.M. Lee said.