Abstract: To reinforce U.S. navy messaging and keep away from fostering anti-Asian discrimination, it’s essential to tell apart between the Folks’s Republic of China (PRC), the Chinese language Communist Celebration (CCP), and the worldwide Chinese language diaspora.
Key Factors:
-Broadly utilizing “China” as a menace can strengthen CCP narratives and alienate non-CCP Chinese language communities.
-Specificity in language, highlighting constructive actions of non-CCP Chinese language teams, and recognizing Taiwan for example of a profitable, free Chinese language society are key methods.
-This strategy prevents misunderstandings and counters the PRC’s narrative whereas selling U.S. international coverage successfully.
Getting the Messaging Proper Across the China Problem: The U.S. Navy’s Dilemma
China will not be our enemy. The Chinese language persons are not our enemy, and we have to begin utilizing this narrative in our day by day messaging.
The time period China is commonly utilized by the U.S. Navy to characterize a pacing menace or problem to the U.S. and its allies. The U.S. Navy needs to be particular to extend accuracy of their language to keep away from confusion and misperception.
China is used as a catch-all, mingling the Folks’s Republic of China (PRC), the Chinese language Communist Celebration (CCP), PRC nationals, and the ethnic diaspora throughout the globe into the time period “China” as one entity.
Mixing the phrases or utilizing only one time period to confer with all teams weakens U.S. International Coverage and strengthens the CCP narrative that they characterize all Chinese language events. This utilization will even contribute to anti-Asian American discrimination.
The U.S. Navy can draw ties from classes discovered throughout the World Battle on Terror (GWOT) in discriminating between radical Islamic terrorists and the Muslim world inhabitants. Conversely, the U.S. Navy can spotlight constructive elements of particular behaviors and actions associated to non-CCP Chinese language communities and ethnic diaspora.
Division of Protection messaging ought to take steps to advertise the actions or behaviors of non-CCP Chinese language teams in messaging to reveal the willingness of the U.S. to keep away from alienation and misrepresentation.
The Drawback
Incorrectly figuring out and highlighting “China” as a menace additional causes rifts and gaps for the PRC to take advantage of. As a substitute of grouping all actions below the time period “China,” U.S. authorities entities ought to spotlight particular entities’ or organizations’ actions as threats.
Specificity in messaging avoids collateral alienation of pleasant/pro-U.S. Chinese language populations and takes steps to separates malign and constructive actions.
For instance, based on the Pew Analysis Heart, over 50% of People view China as the best menace to the U.S. up from 24% in 2019. Clearly, a rising navy menace is a priority to the American public.
Utilizing the umbrella time period China to seize the rising navy menace posed by the PRC creates a story that China as an entire, and all Chinese language folks and entities, needs to be seen because the menace. In actuality, the aggressive navy actions of the PRC don’t characterize all Chinese language. One other instance is present in a current Time article which highlighted that for U.S. Hawks China poses “the best menace to People’ safety, freedom, and prosperity.”
These statements heart on the drive to extend our navy preparedness in opposition to the PRC/CCP. On the similar time, they infer that the Chinese language as an entire are the menace. This instance is present in each media publications and in Division of Protection statements. DOD Coverage Chief John C. Rood, Undersecretary of Protection for Coverage, said that “China Poses the Largest Lengthy-Time period Risk to U.S.” and “[I]t will not be an exaggeration to say China is the best long-term menace to the U.S.”
The China Risk Messaging Problem
These statements proceed to proliferate throughout media, constructing a powerful narrative that China is a menace and our enemy. Whereas this makes for an awesome soundbite, the shortage of specificity creates an issue as a result of it alerts to all Chinese language that they’re thought of a menace. This alerts to the most important ethnic diaspora on the earth that America views them as a menace and offers a rallying cry to the CCP that their actions are justified. Specificity in statements and speeches can guarantee readability and focus.
One ought to delineate a distinction between the PRC and the CCP. The CCP is the governing a part of the PRC, however the phrases should not an identical. The CCP usually reinforces a story that they’re the only illustration of China, Chinese language residents, and the Chinese language diaspora. This isn’t the case. Specificity in language and rhetoric avoids overgeneralizing and assists in recognizing and selling Chinese language actions which can be constructive. Specificity additionally illuminates malign acts and behaviors of the CCP. Utilizing the time period China broadly damages our narrative and emboldens the CCP because the protectorate of all issues Chinese language.
In accordance with a PEW Heart Analysis research (Unfavorable Views of China Tied to Crucial Views of Its Insurance policies on Human Rights | Pew Analysis Heart) of over 19 countries- 11 from Europe, 2 from North America, 1 from the Center East, and 5 from Asia- over 68% of adults surveyed had a detrimental view of the PRC and most related Chinese language actions with the PRC as trending in direction of unfavorable. Most individuals predominantly had been involved in regards to the PRC’s rising navy energy, aggressive actions, and human rights violations. Curiously, adults in international locations describing themselves as ethnically Chinese language felt a stronger confidence within the management of Xi Jinping. The narrative that the PRC represents all Chinese language actions globally stays strongly entrenched.
What GWOT Teaches
There are an estimated 1.4 billion Han Chinese language worldwide. This makes up nearly 18% of the worldwide inhabitants and is the most important ethnic group on the earth. Moreover, there are over 55 acknowledged Chinese language ethnic teams globally. Utilizing umbrella phrases in rhetoric is, due to this fact, deceptive. Additional, illuminating malign actions perpetrated by particular entities demonstrates coercive actions and holds the proper social gathering accountable. The U.S. navy needs to be clear and exact in language when stressing actions or growing capabilities in opposition to pacing threats and potential adversaries. Classes of the GWOT the place islamophobia unfold like wildfire, inflicting important points and distorting narratives, hurting U.S. efforts, and creating false narratives. These false narratives had been utilized by radicalized terrorists to justify their horrendous acts of terror within the title of their ideological wrestle. These classes from the GWOT needs to be put into apply because the U.S. now faces threats from revisionist actors and states who search to undermine present worldwide norms.
The Taiwan Case
Whereas specificity in direction of detrimental actions is required, highlighting constructive Chinese language actions can be vital to enhancing data. The Republic of China (ROC) on the island of Taiwan, also known as simply Taiwan, gives a superb instance of a Chinese language society whose actions might be highlighted to counter the PRC. The ROC is an instance of an alternate Chinese language society and authorities from the PRC and CCP. The federal government on Taiwan counters the CCP’s one voice – one possibility narrative and offers an alternate Chinese language authorities and society.
In 1979, the USA moved to acknowledge the Folks’s Republic of China (PRC) and de-recognize the Republic of China (ROC). Beneath the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), the USA maintained unofficial relations with Taiwan. Whereas the U.S. refers to Taiwan as a defacto state, on the island of Taiwan the official title stays the Republic of China (ROC). Taiwan is among the freest democracies in Asia, rating primary in schooling, freedom of the press, and human rights, which is a stark distinction from the PRC-controlled mainland. Whereas there’s a Taiwanese id that has grown over time, the island right this moment represents one of many largest free Chinese language societies in existence. A reminder to the world that Chinese language folks can dwell, function, and thrive within the present system. Taiwan demonstrates how a Chinese language society can flourish in an interconnected, open world widespread system and highlights a disparity to the PRC, which gives an authoritarian closed system. Taiwan is a completely functioning democracy, respecting human rights and the rule of regulation is supportive of the open worldwide system. Taiwan stays an important companion for the USA and plenty of different international locations regionally and globally. Taiwan represents a sturdy, affluent, free, and orderly society with sturdy establishments that stand as a mannequin for the area.
The reminder of this functioning, open, free Chinese language society is a thorn within the facet of the PRC, who domestically allow strict controls over their inhabitants. The PRC maintains that Taiwan is a rogue state belonging to the PRC. Nonetheless, the ROC authorities on the self-ruled island of Taiwan doesn’t settle for the PRC claims and operates agnostically from the PRC.
Getting the Language Proper
Exact language is required to make sure we’re not mistakenly selling a false narrative and resulting in misunderstanding. Delineating specificity with how we characterize and articulate Chinese language societies, governments, entities, and nationwide teams is vital. Additional, highlighting Chinese language societies like Taiwan combats the PRC’s messaging and offers an alternate possibility as an alternative of a menace.
Signaling the USA’ views China, and equally the Chinese language, as a menace solely bolsters and emboldens the PRC and CCP to pit nations in opposition to one another. We should always welcome the Chinese language folks throughout the globe, whether or not they be our residents, inexperienced card holders, guests, or vacationers into our open system and sign the menace will not be China or the Chinese language Folks. We should always study from our previous errors of alienating and dividing ethnic teams like we did throughout the GWOT the place misplaced hatred and ignorance of terrorist teams spilled over in opposition to Muslim and Arab populations in ways in which fueled divisiveness and created misunderstanding. The Taiwan authorities (ROC) present a competing narrative that may be highlighted to distinguish Chinese language actions from the PRC/CCP and supply various messaging alternatives.
The U.S. navy ought to train specificity in language when labeling a pacing menace, to make sure they’re supporting the proper narrative, thereby separating malign actions of particular events and teams from the general ethnic diaspora.
Concerning the Creator: Justin Woodward
The above work displays the creator’s opinion and doesn’t characterize the official coverage or place of the Particular Forces Regiment, the Division of Protection, or the USA Military.
Main Justin Woodward is a Particular Forces officer, a veteran of small wars, and a pupil of Unconventional Warfare. He has served within the Military and within the Joint Power in varied roles for 17 years.
