Ten Questions: American Misunderstandings about China

The rise of China is perhaps the greatest historical event in the contemporary world. Meanwhile, to explore and understand the rise of China is therefore the most important task of the times in today’s world. In the discussion of China’s rise, various theories of China Threat , China Collapse and China Responsibility etc. have emerged in the western world.

Certain specious arguments have filled the US policy circle and the public. Some made simple grafts and bold revisions on history, producing the fallacy of America rebuilding China . Some purposefully switched the concept, distorting the great historical process of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation into a well-planned Hundred-Year Marathon that aims to replace the US hegemony. While reluctant to judge the above interpretations as fabricated out of thin air, we would rather take them as misunderstanding or misreading due to the lack of in-depth knowledge on complex China . Such being the case, what we have done in this essay collection is only to restore the facts as they are, or rather, to at least present opinions from the perspective of Chinese scholars. In doing so, we seek not to persuade or convince anyone, but to make Chinese voice heard in a truthful, objective and rational way. For this purpose, we have selected ten representative China-related discourses that are currently debated in the US government and public, and made thematic and condensed responses in the form of questions and answers - hence the name Ten Questions on China. Because of inadequate expertise and time rush, the answers to the ten questions are far from profound and comprehensive. As a matter of fact, what we do at this stage is to raise the points and look forward to further discussions.