Beijing set to boost diplomacy in post-outbreak era

China faces new challenges in 2020 in the field of diplomacy, although after largely containing the novel coronavirus pandemic at home, China has made concerted efforts to normalize diplomatic activities and deal with the outstanding and emerging challenges on the external front.

The pandemic has not only caused global economic recession but also given rise to social unrest and political tensions within and between countries, as well as disrupted the world order and global governance.

It has also prompted the United States, and some other countries, to resort to unilateralism and trade protectionism, and fall back on Cold War-like policies to fulfill their narrow economic and geopolitical goals. Which have soured Sino-US relations, and pose a big diplomatic challenge to China. In particular, they threaten to derail China's high-quality development plan, which it aims to realize, among other things, through the Belt and Road Initiative.

China has strived to improve the deteriorating external environment caused by the US' anti-Chinese propaganda which includes blaming China for the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic across the world and slandering the Communist Party of China and its policies.

The US' anti-China campaigns, which, to a certain extent, have influenced the global public opinion, have made Beijing's diplomatic battle even more complex at a time when the pandemic is still raging in many parts of the world. Yet China has provided evidence to prove all such allegations are baseless.

When the pandemic put an end to almost all international exchanges, China used videoconferences to help coordinate global efforts to fight the global public health crisis. It also dispatched medicines, and medical teams and equipment to more than 140 countries and exchanged anti-pandemic information with over 150 countries to help them contain the virus.

China has fulfilled its international responsibilities as a major global power not because it wants to derive any benefits from its efforts but because it is committed to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

China's efforts have been acknowledged by the international community, which in turn has helped it to reboot its offline diplomatic efforts. For example, China's top diplomats have visited countries such as Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Myanmar, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, France and Germany.

But these efforts have not stopped the US-led West from further slandering China. What the anti-China brigade doesn't realize is that in the post-pandemic era, only normal, mutually beneficial diplomatic relations can help the world to overcome the negative impacts of COVID-19.

To restore global peace and stability－and to urge the US to abandon its Cold War mentality and zero-sum game－China has been trying to ease tensions with the US, as China's diplomatic goals include improving both the domestic and international situations, ensuring global development and security, safeguarding national interests, and deepening partnerships with other countries, as well as promoting multilateralism and international cooperation.

China is a responsible country, and its diplomacy is aimed at not only protecting its national interests but also ensuring international justice and improving the world order. And it is committed to fulfilling all its responsibilities in this regard.

The author is associate professor with the School of Government and Public Affairs, Communication University of China.

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