From the International Herald Tribune:
Recent Chinese statements on its critical relationship with the United States have tried to deflect perceptions of a brewing confrontation by projecting China as a “force for peace.” Such statements highlight the carefully woven rhetoric that has accompanied China’s emergence as a global superpower. Although it is often dismissed as shallow propaganda, silver-tongued diplomats in Beijing have skillfully used this diplomatic lexicon to create the illusion that China is the polar opposite of a superpower that acts unilaterally and uses military power to achieve its goals.
Here in Asia, the illusion is captured by two of the most common terms of diplomatic endearment heard in Chinese official circles. The first is that China is embarked on a “peaceful rise” and that it’s engagement with the rest of the world is on a “win-win” basis.
