Barb reflects badly on US

US speaks of exceptionalism

Witnessing the growth of China's comprehensive strength and international influence in recent years, many Western media outlets, particularly those in the United States, have heaped an increasing amount of ironic praise on China, including the theory of "China's responsibilities", a "G2 Era", and "Chimerica". At bottom, the true reason for promoting such flowery concepts is that they want Beijing to assist Washington in maintaining the US' world order and even cleaning up its post-war messes.

chinanews.com, Aug 12

In the past 30 years, the relationship between China and the rest of the world, including the United States, has essentially been on the basis of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, instead of hanging on to the coattails of others. On the one hand, China's development has benefited from the world and vice versa; on the other hand, being deeply integrated into the world, China has also greatly impacted the world in return. US President Barack Obama's recent remarks which accused China of taking a free ride in Iraq and exaggerated how poor Russia's manufacturing industry is, reflect Washington's arrogance and US' self-declared exceptionalism. The US should not only respect but also get used to China's rising power.

People's Daily Oversea Edition, Aug 13

Seeing China as a "free rider" is the prevailing impression of China among the US elite, and can be interpreted in the following ways: First, it is a complaint from Washington, accusing Beijing of gaining extra advantage and growing big while others still count on the United States; second, it showcases their view of American exceptionalism, by bragging about the international community's dependence on the US.

Jin Canrong, associate dean at the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China, people.com.cn, Aug 12

If China is taken to have benefited a lot by taking a free ride in the past three decades, a reversal has been widely noticed nowadays as many countries are benefiting from China's economic development. Many investors in various Chinese projects, and the countries confronted with economic, financial or debt crises, are all looking to be "free riders" of China.

ifeng.com, Aug 12