Wang Yi’s Feb. 18 speech at the Munich Security Conference, the Feb. 20 release by China of a paper on “U.S. Hegemony and Its Perils,” the Feb. 21 release by China of its “Global Security Initiative Concept Paper,” the Feb. 24 publication of “China’s Position on the Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis,” the twelve-point outline for a new peace architecture, and the expected March visit of President Xi Jinping to Moscow, following an expected visit by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko to Beijing—all of these events show a significant change in Chinese involvement on the world stage, and an assertion of sovereignty and self-determination, reports a detailed piece in Moon of Alabama. (https://www.moonofalabama.org/2023/02/us-hegemony-at-war-with-chinas-global-security-initiative.html )
“Since becoming the world’s most powerful country after the two world wars and the Cold War, the United States has acted more boldly to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, pursue, maintain and abuse hegemony, advance subversion and infiltration, and willfully wage wars, bringing harm to the international community,” states the introduction of the Feb. 20 “U.S. Hegemony and Its Perils.” “The United States has developed a hegemonic playbook to stage ‘color revolutions,’ instigate regional disputes, and even directly launch wars under the guise of promoting democracy, freedom, and human rights.” The document says the U.S. has “abused export controls and forced unilateral sanctions on others” and “taken a selective approach to international law and rules ... in the name of upholding a ‘rules-based international order.’” (https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/wjbxw/202302/t20230220_11027664.html)
Such direct statements, of the “Emperor’s New Clothes” variety, were continued by Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin on Feb. 23, when responding to a State Department alarm about China-Russia ties: “The U.S. is the number 1 warmonger in the world.... The U.S. accounted for about 80% of all post-World War II armed conflicts. The U.S. is also the number 1 violator of sovereignty and interferer in the internal affairs of other countries. ... Since the end of World War II, the U.S. has sought to subvert more than 50 foreign governments, grossly interfered in elections in at least 30 countries, and attempted assassination on over 50 foreign leaders. The U.S. is also the number 1 source of antagonism and bloc confrontation.” After referring to the conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria that have brought death and poverty to millions of their citizens, Wang concluded his response: “As long as U.S. hegemonism and belligerence still exist, the rest of the world will hardly get the peace it deserves.” (https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510_665401/2511_665403/202302/t20230223_11030365.html)
