Which country is the real meddler in others' affairs?

China Daily | Updated: 2018-10-17 07:57

Image from article: US Vice-President Mike Pence addresses the Hudson Institute in Washington, DC, on October 4, 2018. [Photo/VCG]

Editor's note: In his recent speech at the Hudson Institute, US Vice-President Mike Pence made groundless accusations against China. Wang Dong and Sun Bingyan, two research fellows on international relations at Peking University, commented in a recent article:

Among all Pence's groundless accusations against China, the most ridiculous one must be China "meddling" in the US midterm elections in a bid to undermine the Donald Trump administration.

Pence gave two justifications for his claim. First, he said that China was intentionally seeking to weaken the support for the Republican Party in the agricultural states of the United States with its tit-for-tat tariffs. Second, he said that China's public diplomacy [JB emphasis] in the US was trying to influence people to vote against the Republican candidates.

Doubtlessly, it is the result of design that Pence launched the attack against China. First, by blaming China, he could shift US people's attention from the article in New York Times that criticized US President Donald Trump. Second, by labeling China as a "troublemaker", he was trying to mislead US voters to encourage them to vote for the Republican Party in the midterm elections.

Yet his speech is groundless. Which country in this world likes to meddle in the domestic affairs of other nations? The answer is clear: The US. And China is victim of its meddling.

The US has repeatedly meddled in China's domestic affairs by selling arms to Taiwan, supporting anti-China forces and groups, and intervening in China's territorial disputes with neighboring countries. Does it sound absurd that Pence now blames China for "meddling" in the US' affairs?

More ridiculously, Pence quoted Lu Xun, a famous China writer in the 1920s and 1930s, at the end of his speech. Lu blamed some Chinese in his epoch for not knowing how to treat others equally: They either lowered themselves too much or looked down upon others.

It is a very good quote for US conservatives to read. If Pence and his Republican friends really hope to learn from Lu, then please start by treating other countries in an equal manner.