Dr. Wordman
Kissinger once said: "The United States has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests." This sentence shows that the U.S. is an extremely selfish country. We can find ample evidence to prove it. The U.S. did not join in the two world wars for a long time, instead, it tried its best to do business to make war profits. The recent Russo-Ukrainian war can also show the U.S. benefiting from the war, such as using loans to aid arms and sanctioning anyone trading with Russia. The U.S. sold its natural gas to the EU at a high price than US domestic price. However, if you think about it calmly, there is nothing wrong with prioritizing one’s national interest above other’s. Every country should put its own interests first. The problem is that what a government or government officials define as the interests of the country may not be the real interest of the people. Citizens must use their heads to understand the national interests rather than accepting them blindly.
For example, is it correct for the U.S. to ban Huawei's 5G technology equipment on national security grounds? Even civilian use is completely banned, is it reasonable? The U.S. fabricated a story that Huawei servers have backdoors, allowing the enemy to obtain intelligence, hence not safe. However, several countries said that Huawei’s communication equipments were inspected and proven to have no backdoors, a slap on the U.S. face. Nevertheless, the U.S. still blanketly sanctioned Huawei and asked its allies to follow suit. But the truth is that the real consideration of the U.S. is based on its strategic assumption, not facts. From the American hegemonic mentality point of view, the rising China is an enemy, who must be suppressed. Huawei is a successful Chinese company, especially in communication domains. The U.S. is worried that once it goes to war with China, the supply of communication products and the various spare parts needed will make the U.S. vulnerable. The U.S. military having this kind of consideration is nothing wrong and understandable. However, in front of the axiom of free and fair competition, the U.S. will lose face to say that it cannot compete with Huawei. So, it takes out the big hat of national security to ban and suppress all Huawei products, knowing Huawei is a successful civilian Chinese company.
Similarly, is treating the semiconductor supply chain as a political problem justified? Of course not! Semiconductor products have a wide range of applications, and they are basic building components in various domains, people's livelihood goods, commerce, industry, military, and even space. Under the principle of free trade, the global semiconductor industry has grown vigorously in decades, from upstream design, midstream raw material supply, and product manufacturing to downstream finished product delivery, processing, assembly, application and marketing, forming a mature structure. The semiconductor industry and its entire supply chain are major pilars of the global economy. In this environment, China mostly operates in downstream because of its market demand, and its upstream and midstream needs are dependent on the supply from other places. Like suppressing Huawei, the U.S. has launched comprehensive sanctions against China on semiconductors, totally disregarding the concept of a free global economy, prohibiting the supply of semiconductor to China, chips, raw materials, technologies, products, etc. In this semiconductor war, the hegemonic mentality of the U.S. is even more obvious and arrogant. Threats and lures are used to force the world's semiconductor industry not only to comply with the U.S. sanctions, but also to require its leading companies to move their factories to the U.S. Its purpose is to make the U.S. the leader of the semiconductor industry, monopolizing and controlling the entire industry supply chain, preventing China's industrial development, and returning China to a struggling developing country status. Again, there is nothing wrong with the U.S. wanting to be strong and leading, but its bullying and unacceptable use of dirty tricks to cripple competitors in a free trade and fair competition is a hegemonic behavior.
The United States is the most powerful country in the world. From its growth experience, we can understand the reasons why it has become a powerful nation. The two world wars contributed to the United States' ability to dominate the world. After World War II, the U.S. became the strongest nation in the world, having the conditions to lead the world. Since the founding of the United Nations, the U.S. has been committed to participating in international affairs and guiding international relations as a leader. It also has proposed some reasonable rules and values for promoting international cooperation. Under the banner of advocating people's democracy and freedom, the U.S. supports the operation of the U.N. and leads the formulation of rules, although the interests of the U.S. were always put on priority. This behavior is understandable and acceptable when it generously supports the U.N,and assists the small countries. When China was still a poor and developing country, it was learning from the most powerful U.S. China was developing its country under the rules of global cooperation, faithfully adhering to the UN charters. It is undeniable that China was once a beneficiary country in the UN, but it is also undeniable that China’s rise is due to its own effort, diligence and hard work of its entire people, and the effective governance of the country's leadership. In half a century, China has risen to be the number two economy in the world. China is then required to assume more responsibility as a major country with the obligation to help others, but at the same time, China was required to yield to the hegemonic behavior of the U.S. As the second largest economy, China’s GDP is approaching that of the U.S. The U.S. feels threatened and finds that it cannot unilaterally control the formulation of world economic rules and order. Unfortunately, the U.S, seems to have given up the U.N. and tried to justify taking the road of hegemony with its power. The examples mentioned above prove that the U.S. has changed. It can even be said that the U.S. has torn off its hypocritical mask, and put on a hegemonic face practicing placing the U.S. interests first by all means.
History has given us many valuable experiences and lessons. Hegemony will eventually fail. Hegemony depends on military power. Judging from the examples of the German Nazis and Japanese imperialists, control by military power is short-lived. It is impossible for the people to accept military rule for a long time. This is true in one country, and even more so in the international community. What's more, in today's situation where many countries possess destructive nuclear weapons, hegemony can only lead to the destruction of all mankind. It is understandable for any country to put its own interests first, but it must be applied under the principle of 王道, a gentle acceptable governance.霸道 (forceful military way) may be represented by a single word, hegemony, in English, then 王道 is anti-hegemony. There are many examples of anti-hegemony dynasties in Chinese history, as well as many philosophies and theories of anti-hegemony. The reason why the Chinese nation has become the largest population in the world to survive and multiply in thousands of years is that it has developed the genes of inclusiveness, not exclusiveness ('You or I' mentality). In the West, influenced by religious thinking, there is only one God, my God, never your God. Thus, between people and between nations, the exclusiveness mentality prevails, and the inclusiveness philosophy was lost. Therefore, it is wrong thinking for the U.S. to regard China as an enemy. We should understand Chinese history, Chinese culture, and Chinese national characters, what is 王道? Anti-hegemony? Why do China and its people talk about 世界大同(harmonious world or world unity) and 人類命運共同體 (common destiny of mankind)? To have you without me or to have me without you will only lead to a divisive world eventually leading to the destruction of mankind. Does it matter who wins then? Only peaceful coexistence, fair competition, inclusiveness with mutual benefit, and common prosperity will bring humans a bright future.
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