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Hiding One's Capacities and Time Is Weapon to Cope with Strong Enemy
Around the time of 1990, many Westerners congratulated each other on the tremendous changes occurred in Eastern Europe, thinking that this would spell the "end" of socialism, and that as long as they worked harder, China would be the next 'domino".
They stepped up their efforts to incite internal tumult in and imposed sanction on China. The developing countries generally placed high hopes on China, and even expected that China would come out and readily serve as the head, but they feared that China, "alone and helpless" could not stand up to the pressure exerted by the "single hegemonic power" and power politics.
Internally, there were also some people sensed an "imminent disaster", some people even felt "indignation", advocating "resolute struggles", criticizing former Soviet leader for "betraying socialism".
At that crucial moment, Comrade Deng Xiaoping put forward the strategic principle, known as making calm observation, taking a firm foothold, coping with the situation composedly, hiding our capacities and time and doing and accomplishing something. He stressed the need to engage in hard and realistic work, doing one thing well, our own thing". "Our own thing" mentioned here means "taking economic construction as the central task" and carrying out the reform and opening program. This "thing", when well done, will put China in an ever-victorious position, other problems will be readily resolved, including Taiwan which will not be lost. To do this "thing" well, it is necessary to "hide our capacities and time".
"Hiding our capacities and time" is a long-term strategy and not an expedient measure. China's implementation of the strategy of "hiding our capacities and time" is active, not passive. While putting forward this strategy, Deng Xiaoping also pointed out the need to "do and accomplish something".
As the largest developing country and a permanent member of the Security Council of the United Nations, China should naturally make its contribution in international affairs. It should also uphold justice in matters concerning the legitimate rights and interests of the developing countries. In regard to comprehensive national strength, although it cannot engage in arms race, it should be prepared to cope with the "killer mace" of the strong enemy and prevent trouble before it happens.
Passively understanding the strategy of "hiding our capacities and time" will cause one to easily fall into the position of "doing and accomplishing nothing" and into passivity; excessively stressing "doing and accomplishing something" will make one easily become "left" deviation, doing so actually overrates oneself, poses oneself as a hero and draws fire upon oneself. These two social phenomena currently are objectively existing, there seems to be the need to make further exploration and clarification in light of realities.
While putting forward the strategy of "hiding our capacities and time" and "doing and accomplishing something", Comrade Deng Xiaoping also stressed the need to "firmly refuse to be the head". He said, "we must not act as the head, because if we do so, things will go bad, those practicing hegemony have a bad reputation, acting as the head of the Third World will also be ill-reputed, this is not a word of courtesy, rather, it is a realistic political consideration". Even if China becomes powerful in the future, it will never serve as the head, not practice hegemony, not seek spheres of influence, not pursue group politics, and not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries. We must not give overstate words, must not do improper work, we must not give a showy display of our abilities because of external provocation and stimulation, nor should we be carried away by some unrealistic praises and flatteries.
It is said that the international environment facing China has "greatly worsened" in the past 10 years, China has lost the international conditions for the strategy of "hiding our capacities and time". It thinks this saying does not conform with realities, certain cognition "basis" of which is open to discussion.
Firstly, facts prove that in the past 10 years although the international environment was not without secret worry and the need to maintain vigilance and prevent trouble before it happens, it, however, has been greatly improved as a whole. During this decade, China has joined the APEC and ASEM, established with Russia a strategic cooperative relationship oriented to the 21st century, and the two countries have jointly boosted the establishment of the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization); China-EU relations have experienced new, important development; China has actively participated in dialogs with ASEAN and become its dialog member country, this has given a great impetus to the "10+3" activity and gained initial results. The situation in the Korean Peninsula has tended to become relaxed, both North and South Korea have maintained and developed good relations with China. China's relations with other neighboring countries have also witnessed different degrees of improvement and development. Although there exist some contradictions and problems left over from history between China and some individual neighboring countries, they are not so serious as propagated by certain Western countries. Last year, China successfully held the China-African Ministerial Forum. Haven't all these convincingly proved that China has enjoyed a higher international status, larger influence and a better environment than before?
Secondly, it seems that we have inadequate understanding of the United States' current international status (circumstance) as well as its fragility and dual character. The present situation of international struggle is characterized mainly by the contradiction between the US hegemonism and unilateralism and the eagerness of various countries in the world for peace and development as well as the development trend of multipolarization, it is not a problem between the United States and China, but rather a problem of the United States and the whole world. The allegation, made by a few American politicians and some media, that China "has replaced the former Soviet Union", and has constituted the "main threat" to and become the "No.1 enemy" of the United States, is obviously a deliberate misleading.
The Kosovo war has exposed the weakness of the United States. The United States gathered together NATO member countries and employed the most advanced weapons to conduct wanton and indiscriminate bombings of a small country-Yugoslavia-for 78 days, but it failed to achieve what it had wished. If the target it hit was a big country, particularly a big country with certain counter-attack capabilities and if it received no support from its allies, isn't it clear in its mind what price it has to pay? Furthermore, the United States hit out in all directions, with 10 fingers pressing 10 "fleas", can it manage to do that? As to the question regarding that the United States tries to draw over certain countries neighboring China to cope with us, that is all the more wishful thinking. As long as we persist in the strategy "hiding our capacities and our time", carry out our neighborly and friendly policy, the United States cannot succeed in achieving its attempt. Even if there are some contradictions, they can be eased gradually.
All previous US governments, no matter how high-sounding statements they made and how ferocious they appeared, all these were basically done within the framework of "contact plus containment" or "containment plus contact", their emphasis might vary with different person, time and matter. As soon as Bush came to power, his foreign policy toward China was ferocious and overbearing. But he met with condemnation at home and abroad and enjoyed little support, even members of his own Party and some mainstream media cannot agree with his foreign policies, they even said that the diplomatic IQ of the Bush administration is low. We should soberly observe their next-step move. We should see whether they would adjust their policy and how they would do that, where would they place the emphasis. We should not make a hasty conclusion, still less should we be swayed by emotions, confront the tough with toughness, leaving no room for movement.
Author Wang Yusheng: served successively as ambassador to Nigeria and Colombia. Between 1993 and 1998 he became senior official and ambassador to APEC. He was once a special research fellow of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, chief advisor to APEC Chinese Enterprise Joint Conference. He is now executive council member of the China International Issues Research and Academic Exchange Fund
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