abominable! Biden's speech attacks China's Xinjiang policy, hong Kong media: The latest signal that the US government regards human rights as a top foreign policy priority

Source: Global Times

[Lin Ri, Special Correspondent of the Global Times in the United States, Guo Yuandan, Special Correspondent of the Global Times, Chen Xin, Special Correspondent of the Global Times] Will playing the "human rights card" be taken as the core policy, or will it be upgraded to play the "Taiwan card"? In recent days, there has been a fierce debate in the United States over this disagreement over China policy. When he took office, he pulled up the "banner of human rights" and tried to win over the "Democratic Alliance" against China's US President Biden, and in a speech on the 15th, he actually compared China's Xinjiang policy with the German Nazi massacre of Jews during World War II. It was one of his most radical voices in promoting a "human rights first" policy. Meanwhile, some bipartisan members of Congress are pressuring Biden to change his policy and take a tougher stance on Beijing on Taiwan as soon as possible. Their proposals were equally radical, including abandoning "strategic ambiguity" and giving the president more authority to launch overseas military operations if necessary in response to a "invasion" of Taiwan. For the United States, which has a bad human rights record but is very double-standard, playing the "human rights card" is actually quite inadequate. The world has debunked many human rights lies in the United States, learned about the black history of the United States' genocide against indigenous peoples, and watched the crimes committed by the United States in the process of withdrawing troops from Afghanistan. As for whether playing the "Taiwan card" can be successful, the Chinese side has given a clear answer. On the 17th, when making a statement on the latest joint voyage of US and Canadian warships through the Taiwan Strait, Colonel Shi Yi, spokesman for the Eastern Theater, said: "Taiwan is part of China's territory. The theater troops always maintain a high degree of vigilance and resolutely counter all threats and provocations. ”

"Worse and hypocritical than the Trump administration's claims"

"Biden sends the latest signal that the U.S. government is making human rights a top foreign policy priority." What Hong Kong's South China Morning Post said was Biden's speech delivered at the inauguration ceremony of the "Dodd Center for Human Rights" at the University of Connecticut on the 15th local time. The center is named after a close Friend of Biden's, former U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, and his father, Thomas Dodd. The former visited Taiwan with two former deputy secretaries of state in April this year, and was called by the media as "the first delegation of Biden's inaugural president." The latter was an FBI agent and later served as a prosecutor prosecuting Nazi war criminals at the Nuremberg trials.

Biden said in his speech that the Nuremberg trials gave people a close-up look at what kind of crimes humans can commit, and it is not an accident to see crimes against humanity. "Sadly, when we look around the world today, we can't say that the specter of atrocities is over. We see these patterns playing out in the world today. Biden then gave examples of so-called "forced labor in Xinjiang" and the "mistreatment" of Rohingya in Myanmar.

Malaysia's Sin Chew Daily commented that during the presidency of former President Trump, the United States used "genocide" to attack China's Xinjiang policy. Biden went further on the 15th, comparing xinjiang policy with the Massacre of Jews by the German Nazis during World War II. France Radio International said Biden reiterated that the United States would not stand idly by and warned other countries that they were "complicit" if they remained silent about human rights abuses.

Zhu Ying, a professor of human rights law at Southwest University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times reporter on the 17th that Biden's remarks, although obscure, are full of evil. Dodd's prosecutorial background, combined with Biden's words, places the United States on the moral high ground while portraying China as a public enemy of humanity. Attacking China on human rights issues, the Biden administration is worse and more hypocritical than the Trump administration.

Biden again claimed that day that from day in office, he "put human rights at the center of foreign policy and reaffirmed America's moral leadership on the global stage" because there are fewer, not more, democracies in the world than 15 years ago. He mentioned that the United States recently rejoined the UN Human Rights Council and will host a "democracy summit" in December.

Yet the United States has repeatedly exposed its hypocrisy on human rights issues. According to the Washington Post reported on the 16th, nearly two months after the incident, the Pentagon finally promised on the 15th that it would provide "special condolence money" to the families of 10 Afghan civilians who were killed by the US military as terrorists, as well as cooperate with the State Department to provide support to the families who are willing to immigrate to the United States.

The families of the 10 victims had previously demanded compensation from the US side and apologized to them in person. But the Pentagon's statement did not mention an apology, avoided using the term "compensation," and did not disclose the specific amount. The New York Times said that the amount of condolences paid by the Us side for the death caused by the US military is hugely different. In fiscal year 2019, for example, the Pentagon made 71 such payments to Afghanistan and Iraq, ranging from $131 to $35,000.

"It will only exacerbate tensions in the Taiwan Strait"

CNN reports that a risk is rising for Biden, who has made "human rights" and "democracy" at the heart of his foreign policy. The Biden administration is trying to think about how to respond to Chinese mainland's escalating "aggression" against Taiwan without accidentally triggering a war, but bipartisan lawmakers in Congress are pressuring the president to change his policy and take a tougher stance on Beijing on Taiwan as soon as possible.

A senior Democratic aide to the U.S. Senate said that "the era of strategic ambiguity is long gone" and that effective deterrence gestures can only come from a clear strategy. According to him, the Senate is exploring more measures to provide security, economic and diplomatic support to Taiwan. Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria, a retired Navy commander, went further. She advocated that Congress give the president more room to maneuver if necessary to launch overseas military operations to defend Taiwan.

Various radical voices have also emerged in the field of public opinion in the United States. A commentary article in the US "National Interest" magazine on the 17th threatened that "if the United States wants to make peace a priority, it must formally recognize Taiwan." The Fox News Network in the United States said in a radical manner that Biden may let Taiwan slip away like Afghanistan.

CNN said there was disagreement within the Biden administration's assessment of the extent to which Taiwan faced a "threat." Sources said the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is increasingly concerned about the rapid military modernization of Chinese mainland and increased pressure on Taiwan. Some U.S. Defense Department officials said they see 2027 (the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army) as a key year. But State Department officials were wary of taking a more radical approach, and intelligence officials saw no evidence that Chinese mainland prepared to "invade" Taiwan.

However, the Biden administration has not slowed down its meddling in Taiwan. CNN reported that before the recent frequent detours of Continental Military aircraft, the Biden administration discussed with Taiwanese officials the possibility of speeding up the delivery of U.S.-made F-16V fighter jets to Taiwan. Some netizens on the island ridiculed the United States for doing this in order to "hollow out Taiwan in advance." Military expert Song Zhongping said in an interview with the media that this practice by the United States and Taiwan will only aggravate tensions in the Taiwan Strait. The Plaster Will Not Stop Cruising Taiwan for this reason, and "it is an indisputable fact that such cruising has become normalized."

No card will succeed

Can the Biden administration, which is bent on playing the "human rights card," succeed? "The United States is clearly unable to raise the banner of democratic morality again." Zhu Ying said in an interview with the Global Times reporter on the 17th that the United States has created many slogans about human rights, but has never combined human rights with the actual development conditions of a certain country. The United States has proposed many good democratic solutions, and in practice it has not left even one positive example of helping other countries to build or build democracy, but on the contrary, it has brought many countries into the flames of war and left a mess. "The people of the world will no longer be fooled by the United States."

Speaking about the return of the United States to the United Nations Human Rights Council, Brett Schaefer, a researcher at the Heritage Foundation, told the South China Morning Post that he did not think the United States could draft a resolution on China through the Human Rights Council on Xinjiang. "Partly because of China's growing influence at the United Nations, where the United States and the European Union are reluctant to confront China for fear of losing the vote." How many countries support China or the United States, Mr. Schaeffer said, depends largely on how the United States handles its own interests and how people perceive it. Unfortunately, the Biden administration is doing a terrible job right now.

So, should the Biden administration heed domestic agitation and make Taiwan a core issue? A letter from a Washington Post asked, "Haven't our policymakers learned from America's disastrous adventures in Cuba, Vietnam and Afghanistan?" The article said that the national security of the United States is not threatened, and the fate of mankind should not be used as a bet.

China's determination to safeguard territorial and sovereign integrity is something that the Biden administration should seriously consider when answering this question. The US side confirmed on the 17th that the US "Dewey" guided-missile destroyer and the Canadian frigate "Winnipeg" jointly crossed the Taiwan Strait on the 15th. Shi Yi, spokesman for the Eastern Theater, said on the 17th that the Eastern Theater of the Chinese People's Liberation Army organized naval and air forces to follow the supervision and vigilance throughout the whole process. The statement severely denounces the Collusion and Provocation of the United States and Canada, stirring up trouble, and being of a bad nature, which seriously endangers peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

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