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Opinion | How identity politics is aggravating China-US tensions
- Identity politics reinforces divisions and mistrust within societies and among nations. As such, it underpins nationalism in China and the US, disrupting cooperation and mutual understanding
- It is time for Chinese and Americans – and in particular ethnic Chinese living in America – to think about who they are, who they are not, and who they are against
Reading Time:4 minutes
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I have given a number of speeches on China-US relations in China since the bilateral trade war in 2018, and especially since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The most frequently asked questions are, “what are the root causes of China-US tensions” and, “why is the United States always trying to push China around?”
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Different speakers give different answers. The most popular is that China, as a rapidly rising power, is challenging US dominance in the world, and the United States, for fear of losing its hegemony, is trying to contain China’s ascendance.
Another answer points to their different ideologies and political systems. Intellectuals argue that the US has always attempted to change China in its own image or to undermine the Communist Party’s leadership by supporting political dissension and separatism.
My own explanation has been a combination of the two answers. However, on reflection following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, I find this explanation not comprehensive enough.
Faced with the daunting challenge of the coronavirus, instead of strengthening cooperation in public health areas, China and the US have engaged in a propaganda war, reproaching each other about the origins of the disease. The rhetorical battle cannot be interpreted by either side as simply reflecting the disparity between their clashing “national interests” or vying for power, supremacy or differences of ideology and political systems. The wrangling reminds us of the significance of identity politics in today’s world.
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Identity politics refers to a political approach where people form exclusive sociopolitical affiliations aimed at supporting the concerns and agendas of particular groups, usually identified by race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, economic class, religion, language and culture. Identity politics usually aims to reclaim greater self-determination and political freedom for marginalised peoples.
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