US the country that makes, breaks rules to suit itself: China Daily editorial

China fully supports the United Nations-centered international order. And its rise has contributed to the evolution of the world order in the direction of fairness, justice and equity.

So when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeatedly urged the other members to join the Joe Biden administration in holding Beijing to "the international rules-based order" before and at the meeting of G7 foreign ministers in London on Tuesday, he was telling the world in an unequivocal way who the rule maker is.

In doing so, he was trying to sell his predecessor's vinegar as wine. It is the view of the US that China's rise will deprive it of its hegemony — a mentality whose narrow view is prescribed self-interest.

Looking at China through the lens to which it has become accustomed, the US fails to appreciate that China's view is different — it is more expansive, encompassing all countries in a community of shared interests.

Despite the attempts by the US to portray it as a rule-breaker, China actively fulfills its international responsibilities, upholds the principles of equity, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, and is dedicated to promoting economic globalization, multilateral global governance and resolving differences through dialogue.

Were it not for China's long-term socioeconomic development — based on hard work at the lower end of the global value chain that has benefited the wealthiest countries — the deadline for the world's pursuit of its sustainable development objectives might be delayed far beyond 2030.

Over the past more than four decades, China has contributed to about 30 percent of the world's growth, and its success in eliminating abject poverty in the country has accounted for 70 percent of the global population that has been lifted out of poverty.

That the US and its allies can invade sovereign countries under fabricated excuses without the authorization of the UN Security Council shows the extent to which they can bend the rules for their own benefits. And their unfair monopolizing of COVID-19 vaccines has made it evident how little regard they have for other peoples.

It is ironic that while China seeks to use international meetings to synergize global actions to address common challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, the G7 countries, in their first in-person meeting in over two years, have opted to line up as a cohort against China irrespective of the heavy collective costs that will have to be borne.

Instead of working with other countries on the basis of international law, following the principle of equity and justice, and focusing on effective actions to address the common challenge of the pandemic, the Biden administration is trying to push forward a divide-and-rule strategy in which the developed countries can maintain their privileged position at the expense of the developing countries.