【专栏】G7不是中国敌人

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编者按：在《环球时报英文版》6月22日刊发的第86篇“变局”专栏中，中国人民大学重阳金融研究院执行院长王文认为，不要把此次G7峰会误解为新冷战的又一个表征，而是将其视为新时期大国互动的又一次角力。下文为专栏的中英文版。

本文英文版在 Global Times 的版面截图

新冠疫情以来的首次G7峰会召开，一场骂战便在欧亚大陆两头、太平洋东西两岸的政治舆论圈中弥漫，仿佛剑拔弩张，誓把对方当敌手。人们的情绪容易被这些舆论带坏了节奏。其实，绕开那些情绪性的政治话语，看看实际的G7文本，或许会发现另一面的事实。

G7公报长达25页，当然有不少中国决不可接受的要点。所谓新疆强迫劳动、不公平贸易、人权、台海等议题的涉华指责，绝对是长期以来G7部分政客们的狭隘、焦虑、偏见所致。G7既然敢白纸黑纸说出口，中国必须对等回击。这与中国决策层想要塑造可爱、可亲、可敬的国家形象并不矛盾。

不过，客观地讲，G7公报中有许多要点，中国并不反对，而且还是共通的。比如，G7国家致力于尽早结束疫情，支持脆弱国家应对疫情，促进世界经济复苏，推动绿色和数字转型，支持以规则为基础的多边贸易体系，应对气候变化，支持社会公平正义，等等。这些要点相信会在今年G20国家领导人公报中有所体现。

其实，这些国际任务与目标，中国一直在做，有的中国做得更好、更早。比如支持发展中国家的基础设施建设，中国早在2013年就推动“一带一路”倡议，2015年推动建立亚洲基础设施投资银行。此次G7国家推动所谓“B3W战略”，与中国“一带一路”的倡议核心思想是一致的。换句话说，是中国启发、倒逼着西方的变化与进步。

还有一些公报内容，虽有理解的分歧，但中国愿意与G7沟通。比如，G7希望病毒溯源。世界卫生组织官员与多次在中国调查病毒溯源，却没有在美国调查。美国应该自信与真诚地配合，开放相关的实验室让全球医学家、科学家们进来调查。又比如，改变现有世界税收体系，这一点中国也愿意与西方国家沟通。

总而言之，在我看来，G7公报的火药味明显被追求发行量、点击量的媒体与大V们带偏了。法国总统马克龙明确表示，G7会议不能被视为敌对中国的“聚会”。德国总理默克尔、意大利总理德拉吉在谈中国时，也更多地谈到合作。即便是最视中国为威胁的美国，拜登总统也没有把中国视为“敌人”。

在我看来，与其把此次G7峰会误解为新冷战的又一个表征，不如将其视为新时期大国互动的又一次角力。

中国与G7国家当下角力的激烈程度，处在大国竞争中的正常范畴内。且不说一战时的英德角斗，冷战时的美苏争霸，就是看看近几十年来美国对日本贸易崛起的压制、美国对法国大企业的制裁、美国对德国领导人的监听，或许，我们就会对中国与G7国家关系的可控性持有更多的信心与定力。

更重要的是，中国与G7国家实际贸易经济往来，与政治舆论之间的对峙截然相反。2021年前5个月，中国与欧盟贸易总值增长28.7%，与美国贸易总值增长41.3%。

2020年，中德贸易同比增长3%，中国连续五年成为德国第一贸易伙伴。2021年第一季度，德国出口增长了2.4%。3月德国对华出口增长了38%，5月更是同比大增47%。德国经济复苏，中国功不可没。

英国对外贸易更是彰显中国的重要性。英国前三大贸易伙伴分别是美国、德国、中国。2021年第一季度，英国货物进出口额仅增长了0.9%，对美国进出口额下降了15.43%，对德国下降了11.85%，但对中国却大涨49.1%。类似现象同样发生在意大利、法国。

或许这就是当下大国政治与经济两张皮的最新状态吧！政治舆论只是飘在水面上的浮萍，阻止不了经济的流动。

我在此前的专栏中曾说，西方一些政客就是塞万提斯笔下的唐吉诃德，老是把中国想象成大风车，装成一副决斗的样子，希望显示自己的勇敢，暴露的却是自己的无知。如果他们真是为本国民众好，就得面对现实，理性地思考到底该如何与崛起不可遏制的中国正常地打交道。

“变局”专栏系列近期文章

以下为英文版

China’s power kick starts West to adjust

By Wang Wen

Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

During the first G7 summit since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a war of words has seeped into the political and public opinion fields in two sides of the Eurasian continent. It has also crept in between the eastern and the western sides of the Pacific Ocean. The two sides seem to be all set for a showdown while treating one another as rivals. People's sentiment can be easily misguided by the trend of the public opinion. But setting political rhetoric aside, one can find another side of story by taking a closer look at the G7 Summit Communiqué. 
There are surely quite a few things that China will absolutely not accept in the 25-page long G7 communiqué. The China-related accusations, including so-called forced labor in Xinjiang, "unfair practices" in trade, "human rights violations" and the finger pointing on the Taiwan Straits, all come from the long-term narrow-mindedness, anxiety and prejudice of some G7 politicians. G7 members dare to turn white black. In response, China must fight back reciprocally. And this does not run counter to the new pursuit of Chinese policymakers: Creating trustworthy, lovable and respectable images of China. 
On the other hand, some parts of the communiqué share the consensus with China. For instance, it proposed to end the pandemic as soon as possible, enhance commitments to support fragile countries in dealing with the pandemic and other health challenges, support the global economic recovery, address climate change and so on. 
As a matter of fact, China has not only been engaged in these proposed missions in the communiqué, it started them earlier and has a done better job. To support infrastructure in developing countries, China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013 and promoted the establishment of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in 2015. The so-called B3W plan (Build Back Better World) launched by the G7 is essentially the same as the China-proposed BRI. In other words, it is China that has inspired and stimulated the West to adjust and advance.
China is willing to communicate with the G7 about some points on the communiqué which the two sides have different understandings about. For example, the investigation into the origins of COVID-19. World Health Organization (WHO) experts have conducted investigations in China, but not even one into the US. Washington should cooperate with the WHO in this regard confidently and sincerely, opening the door of relevant laboratories to virologists and scientists from across the world. In addition, China is also willing to communicate with the West about international taxation reform.
The G7 Summit Communiqué was obviously misled by media outlets that prioritize their popularity. French President Emmanuel Macron said the G7 is not a club hostile to China. German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke more of cooperation when she mentioned China. Even President Joe Biden of the US, who has gone the furthest to view China as a threat, didn't name China as an enemy.
Rather than misinterpret the G7 summit as another signal of a new cold war, I would like to see it as another contest between major powers in the new era.
The fierce rivalry between China and G7 members is within the normal range of great power competition. Apart from the Anglo-German rivalry in World War I, and competition between the US and the former Soviet Union amid the Cold War, we have also witnessed the US suppression of Japan in the 1980s over trade. The US threatened to impose tariffs on some French companies in 2020. And it even spied on German leaders. Against this backdrop, we should have confidence and assurance in the maintenance of China's relations with the G7 members. 
More importantly, the trade and economic exchanges between China and the G7 members stand in contrast to the confrontation in political opinions between the two. In the first five months of 2021, the growth rate of China's trade value with the EU stood at 28.7 percent, with 41.3 percent for the US. 
China was Germany's most important trading partner in 2020 for the fifth consecutive year. In the first quarter of 2021, German exports were up to an overall 2.4 percent over the same period of 2020. German exports to China in March soared by 37.9 percent year-on-year. Indeed, China has contributed to the recovery of the German economy.
London's foreign trade even highlights the importance of Beijing. Currently, the UK's top three trading partners are the US, Germany and China. According to the Office for National Statistics, until the first quarter of 2021, imports of goods from China to the UK have increased by 66 percent since the beginning of 2018. Over the same period, imports from Germany have fallen by a quarter. Moreover, total trade UK with the EU collapsed by 23.1 percent compared with the first quarter of 2018.
This is the latest situation of politics and the economy of the major powers nowadays! Political opinions are just like the duckweed floating on the surface of the water, and cannot stop the flow of the economy.
In my previous column, I once said that some Western politicians are the Don Quixote created by Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes. They always imagine China as a huge windmill and act as if they are ready to duel. They hope to show their courage, but it actually exposes their ignorance. If these politicians really want the best for their people, they should face reality and think rationally about how to deal normally with China, a country whose rise is unstoppable.
(The author is professor and executive dean of Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China.)

// 人大重阳    

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RDCY

中国人民大学重阳金融研究院（人大重阳）成立于2013年1月19日，是重阳投资向中国人民大学捐赠并设立教育基金运营的主要资助项目。

作为中国特色新型智库，人大重阳聘请了全球数十位前政要、银行家、知名学者为高级研究员，旨在关注现实、建言国家、服务人民。目前，人大重阳下设7个部门、运营管理4个中心(生态金融研究中心、全球治理研究中心、中美人文交流研究中心、中俄人文交流研究中心)。近年来，人大重阳在金融发展、全球治理、大国关系、宏观政策等研究领域在国内外均具有较高认可度。

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