Chinese 'soft power' adds to durable peace

Confucius Institutes not enough to help spread China's influence - nation's athletes and artists could help

The discovery of the atom bomb in the early 1940s, and its subsequent adoption as a weapon by the major world powers, including China, changed the nature of war from major regional or global conflagrations involving many millions of people, to more limited conflicts with much lower casualty and death rates.

But the arrival of nuclear weapons did not change the fundamental differences that will always exist between major nations, deriving from national claims over territory and the pursuit of valuable economic resources. National defense forces still play a vital role in deterring an attack and denying physical space to other countries who may be thinking that they can further their national goals by a display of force.

But as the likelihood of a global war has receded, the importance of the military as a means of extending and maintaining a country's international position has faded. Instead, "soft power" has become the primary means by which a country attempts to further international understanding and acceptance of its strategic goals.

As China has re-emerged into the world, after many years of weakness, civil war and introspection, it has begun to feel the need to assert once more its stature as a major nation. China's emergence has often been compared to that of Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. But China's landmass and its population are both more than 10 times larger than Japan's, while its economic development today is still only at an early stage. By contrast, Japan by 1980 was already a rich country. China must continue to develop for many years if it is to realize its potential.

China's demand for natural resources has already had an enormous, largely beneficial impact on many large resource-producing countries, from Australia and South Africa to Brazil and Russia. China's size means its future impact upon the rest of the world, already large, can only become greater. Its ultimate effect, which can only be guessed at, must be managed carefully. It's essential both for China, and for world peace, that China is understood by its neighbors and partners, and regarded as a friend and partner, rather than a threat to be contained.

Soft power has a vital role to play in China's continued development and global emergence. Recognizing this, the Chinese government founded the Confucius Institutes in 2004 as a conscious attempt to extend Chinese cultural influence around the world, in the same way that the Alliance Francaise, the British Council and the Goethe Institute have done for France, Britain and Germany over many years. In the decade of its existence, the Confucius Institute movement has developed rapidly, in the form of partnerships between Chinese universities and nearly 500 foreign universities from Edinburgh to Seattle and Berlin. The movement has focused on teaching Chinese language and culture to foreign students, and has achieved considerable success in extending much-needed understanding of Chinese thought and values around the world.

But in December, United States Congressman Chris Smith, a Republican representing the state of New Jersey's 4th district, made a speech in the House of Representatives in Washington, that called for a review by the independent Government Accountability Office of US involvement in the Confucius Institute program. Smith claimed that the Confucius Institutes interfere with academic freedom. This speech followed a recommendation in June 2014 by the American Association of University Professors that called on US universities to cancel their agreements with Confucius Institutes. So far, only two of the US universities, the University of Chicago and Pennsylvania State University, have done so. US universities host 90 Confucius Institutes.

Smith's rejection of China's important cultural initiative contrasts with the growing need for people everywhere, not just in the US, to embrace Chinese language and culture as a path to understanding the importance that China places on peace and harmony among peoples. It's the only way that the world can continue to prosper without life-threatening global conflict. Meanwhile, academic links between the US and China continue to grow stronger, with major American universities like Harvard, Stanford and New York University broadening their collaboration and developing campuses in China. According to the US Department of Commerce, 31 percent of the foreign students at American universities were Chinese during the 2013-14 academic year, and they contributed $8 billion to the American economy in fees and other expenses.

The reality is that the huge and growing volume of trade between China and the US, coupled with the very large investments made by each country in the other, create a vital shared economic interest and mutual dependence. This makes a drawing together of China with the US an inevitability.

Americans certainly do things differently to the way the Chinese do them. But these differences, between the US and others' ways of living, extend to many Western countries, not just to China. Since 1945, the US' size and power have created a global dominance that has underpinned the development of American influence in Europe and around the world. Today, many Americans who were born and grew up in an era of American global dominance believe that the American way is not only the best way, but also the only way.

Depending on global power won't develop the relationship of mutual understanding between the US and China on which world peace and prosperity depends. Both sides have to learn to respect and understand each others' differences. That process will take years, even decades. China should play its part in this process of mutual accommodation by continuing to project its soft power in ways that do not raise alarms, but follow naturally from its long and distinguished history and its unique culture.

While Confucius Institutes have become an important force for creating international understanding and therefore for bringing about a more stable world, they may not represent the most effective means of promoting China's soft power. Tourism, sports, business and the arts, particularly the movie industry, may be better ways than government intervention of spreading Chinese culture.

The images of countries with strong global presence all rely on private individuals and public landmarks. Where would America's global influence be without Hollywood, New York, Tiger Woods and McDonalds? Where would France be in the world without Paris in the springtime, French wine and food, Catherine Deneuve, Descartes and Proust? Doesn't British influence depend a lot on Manchester United, Jane Austen, Newton, Anna Wintour of Vogue, and fish and chips? Don't spaghetti, ice cream, the music of Verdi and the designs of Armani define Italy in the global consciousness?

By borrowing the name of China's most famous philosopher, the Confucius Institutes recognize the subtle, powerful influence of culture and ideas as a means of promotion. Perhaps China's efforts at extending its soft power to other countries should place as much weight on traditional, famous Chinese products like porcelain, silk and cashmere, the universality of dim sum, and the fame of Chinese artists and athletes like Zhang Yimou, Gong Li, Li Na or Li Ning, as on programs of education sponsored overseas by the Chinese government. People around the world will decide for themselves how they wish to think about China. China's unparalleled array of cultural and artistic achievements, together with its increasing economic influence, will underpin the steady spread of its soft power.

The author is a visiting professor at Guanghua School of Management, Peking University. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.