Myanmar’s intellectual circles: Support China’s Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations

Recently, China's State Council Information Office released the white paper titled “China’s Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations”, demonstrating China’s position and clarifying the truth. It has received much attention from Myanmar’s intellectual class.

Wu Ang, a member of the Central Economic Committee under Myanmar’s ruling party, the National League for Democracy of Burma, and a famous economist, pointed out that China-US trade war to some extents harms interests of manufacturers and consumers on both sides, and its negative influences on other economies in the world have already become obvious. The U.S. criticized China for “robbing” U.S. citizens’ jobs, but according to the report from U.S.-China Business Council, U.S. exports to China supported over 1,100,000 U.S. jobs from 2009 to 2018; In 2018, a year when China-US economic and trade frictions intensified, 34 states in the U.S. saw exports to China drop, and the middle-west agricultural states were hurt most severely.

Thus it can be concluded that the U.S. has ignored an important fact that the advantages of China-US relationship outweigh the disadvantages for both countries. Trade with China offers high-quality and cheap Chinese products, which not only bring practical material benefits but also help U.S. Federal government restrain inflation.

Wu Qinmaolin, the first secretary of Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs and senior researcher with the Myanmar Institute of Strategic and International Studies, indicated in an interview with our reporters that the escalating economic and trade frictions will severely threaten the multilateral trading system and the principle of free trade. The U.S. has produced no evidence for its allegations that trade with China is unfair, and China has stolen U.S. technologies. They have ignored two facts: on the one hand, the Chinese government places more and more emphasis on education and focuses on technological innovation, increasing manpower and material inputs for the research and development of new and high technologies. China has achieved rapid hi-tech development and enterprises like Huawei have come into being. On the other hand, Chinese people are the most diligent in the world, and competition among countries exist objectively.

The U.S. is unsatisfied with China’s abrupt rise and hopes the industries and manufacturing industries go back to the U.S. Then the U.S. should compete with China fairly in technology and the extent of citizens’ diligence, instead of directly violating the basic principles of international relationship such as mutual respect and equal consultation and applying protectionism and economic hegemony. The U.S. takes it for granted that there should not be other countries challenging its position as the global hegemon. Such ideas and actions of hegemony are undoubtedly unreasonable.

Wu Wending, a senior media professional, the chief editor of “Polaris Weekly”, and the chief editor of the ruling party organ “Federal Daily”, said that China is being challenged seriously by the U.S. China’s attitude of never making concession on matters of principles expresses China’s position. The reaction to U.S. initiating the trade war is positive and correct. Now economic globalization has developed conspicuously, and China-US economic and trade relationship has already been the important component of the global supply chain. The trade war initiated by the U.S. harms the interests of both countries, meanwhile harms the interests of industries and consumers from other countries all over the world. The cooperation of China and Myanmar is deepening in every field, which shows Myanmar China’s friendly attitude and positive actions in international economic and trade exchanges and international communication and cooperation. Believing that the “Belt and Road” initiative will make significant contributions to realizing world peace and prosperity, China will make efforts to create a better world together with countries all over the world.

Contributed by Guangming Daily reporter Lu Cheng

Translated by Gao Xinran