We should thank Beijing’s ruling group for pointing out the fundamental flaw of American foreign policy toward China. Even if our policies are working — they’re not, but that’s another story — Washington is employing tactics that will take decades to bear fruit. So far, we have been appealing to the good instincts of autocrats who interpret gestures of friendship as signs of weakness and who respect nothing but strength. Perhaps we can entice them to be cooperative, but they have just told us that this approach will require a lifetime of unilateral concessions and obsequious behavior on our part.Well said, and applicable to far more than US-Chinese relations.
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