Indian Defence Review

The Chinese action in holding the first test flight of their stealth aircraft when Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, was on a visit to Beijing from January 9 to 12 to improve military-military relations has added to the concerns of the US regarding Chinas real military intentions.

The call for a re-definition of the relationship to restore its importance in the US foreign policy making has come not only from Chinese analysts and sections of the Chinese media such as the “Global Times”. It has also come from former US policy-makers such as Zbigniew Brzezinski , former National Security Adviser, and Henry Kissinger, former National Security Adviser and Secretary of State. The Chinese have been highlighting with considerable nostalgie that Hu’s visit coincides with the 40 th anniversary of the first secret visit of Kissinger to China in July 1971, which set the ball rolling for a rappochement between the US and China which benefitted the US greatly in its cold war with the USSR.

The Chinese have also been recalling wistfully a reported remark of Kissinger during one of his visits to China that all US Presidents understand the importance of China, but do not have a proper understanding of China when they come to office.

The Chinese are hoping that the definite downward slide in the US-China relations during 2010 was only due to the inadequate understanding of China by Obama and that as result of the current talks with Hu, inadequacies in understanding will be removed and 2011 will see a turn for the better in the bilateral relations.

Beijing does not seem to understand that whatever be the warm words used by Obama and others during his visit to Washington, the question mark over China has become even bigger in the eyes of the Americans due to their assertiveness in the South and East China Seas, their unwillingness to pressure North Korea to behave, their accelerated military-build-up and the growing signs of the increasing role of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in external policy making—particularly with regard to relations with the US.

Also read: An analysis of China’s White Paper on Defence

The Chinese action in holding the first test flight of their stealth aircraft when Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, was on a visit to Beijing from January 9 to 12 to improve military-military relations has added to the concerns of the US regarding China’s real military intentions. It has been seen as a blatant Chinese attempt to flaunt their growing military might when Gates was in Beijing.

This was an extremely insensitive action on their part which has made the Americans ask themselves even more intensely than in the past: Is China a friend or foe?

Hu wants to reassure the Americans that whatever it might or might not do, China is a friend of the US. Will he be able to carry conviction?