U.S. Policy Should Appeal to Chinese Public Opinion

When the Berlin Wall fell 27 years ago, signaling the end of communism as a serious international force, no one cared much what people in China thought. The People's Republic of China had escaped its Maoist catastrophe only a decade before. Beijing was almost a nullity in foreign affairs.

Today the world is very different. The PRC trails only the U.S. in economic activity and military outlays. China has become the dominant trading nation around the world and far outranges the U.S. in East Asia, including with Washington's leading allies. Beijing also has won influence in Africa and Latin America through aid, investment, and trade.

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