Two countries, one survey by Jim Lobe

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Two countries, one survey
By Jim Lobe

WASHINGTON - While the Chinese and US publics and elites hold generally
favorable views of each other, distrust between them also persists,
according to a new "mirror" survey of both countries released here
Monday.

The survey, entitled "Hope and Fear: American and Chinese Attitudes
Towards Each Other" found that a majority of US citizens consider
China's growing economic power as at least a "potential threat" to US
interests, while Chinese were most concerned about Washington's
intentions regarding Taiwan and preventing their country from becoming a
world power.

A majority of Chinese also believe their country will overtake
Washington as the world's leading superpower within the next 20 years,
while only one in five US citizens believe Beijing will reach that
status. About half of the US public believes Washington will retain its
leading position, while less than one in four Chinese agree with that
view.

The survey, which asked the same questions of respondents on a range of
issues in both countries during August and September, was sponsored by
the Committee of 100 (C-100), a non-governmental organization made up of
Chinese-American leaders who broadly support engagement between the two
countries. It was conducted by the Zogby International polling firm.

In addition to interviewing members of the general public, the survey
also identified discrete groups of "opinion leaders" and "business
leaders" in both countries, as well as "Congressional staffers" in the
US who help determine elite opinion.

The survey's release comes at a moment of relative stability in ties
between the two nations, which have cooperated closely in recent years
on such hot-button issues as North Korea's nuclear program.

Despite the presence in the current administration of a number of "China
hawks", including former Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld and Vice
President Dick Cheney, President George W Bush has, if anything, tried
to solidify ties with Beijing over the past seven years.

Still, tensions have persisted. Washington has pushed hard for Beijing
to address its huge bilateral trade deficit in part by revaluing the
yuan and by stricter enforcement of intellectual property rights. It has
also criticized China occasionally for not being more forthcoming about
its military budget and strategic planning and for its relations with
so-called "rogue" states, including Sudan, Myanmar, Iran and Zimbabwe.

Beijing has its own complaints, including US arms sales to Taiwan and
Washington's efforts to draw India, Japan, Vietnam, Australia and other
countries on the Chinese periphery into an informal geostrategic
alliance as a check to Beijing's expanding military reach.

The survey found that publics in both nations hold mostly favorable
views of each other, although negative impressions of China were more
widespread in the US

Sixty percent of Chinese respondents held generally favorable views of
the US, while only one in five had an unfavorable view. In the US, the
split was 52% favorable toward China; 45%, unfavorable.

The views of Chinese business and opinion leaders were significantly
more positive about the US than the public at large - up to 94% in the
case of business leaders.

The views of their elite counterparts in the US, on the other hand,
tended to be consistent with those of the US public, with the exception
of Congressional staffers, only 35% of whom held favorable opinions of
China, while 62% said their views were unfavorable.

Both publics considered the relationship with each other as among their
most important. From a list of seven nations, Chinese respondents said
the US was Beijing's most important partner; US respondents ranked China
as the third most important partner, behind Britain and Japan.

More than seven out of 10 respondents in both countries said they
believed that bilateral trade benefits both economies, although
enthusiasm was somewhat higher in China.

Still, about two out of three US respondents said they believed China's
emergence as a global economic power represented either a "serious" or a
"potential" threat to the US, while one in three said China's emergence
either represented no threat or that China should be seen as an
"economic partner". Three in four US respondents said they blame China
for the loss of US jobs, while the vast majority of Chinese respondents
took a more benign view of their effect on the US and the world economy.


US respondents expressed similar concerns about the growing strength of
Beijing's military power - 75% said they saw it as either a "serious" or
a "potential" threat. That was up from 66% who took that position in a
C-100 survey taken two years ago.

Still, nearly two-thirds of US respondents - compared to only one-third
of Chinese respondents - agreed with the statement that Washington
"accepts China's status as a rising power and wants a collaborative
relationship".
One-third of US respondents - and 45% of Chinese respondents - said they
believe Washington is "trying to prevent China from becoming a great
power".

If military hostilities resulted from a declaration of independence by
Taiwan, 60% of US respondents said Washington should not intervene,
while nearly one-third supported intervention on Taiwan's behalf. Only
11% of Chinese respondents supported achieving unification with Taiwan
through military force; a majority or plurality of Chinese public and
elite respondents expressed optimism that Taiwan's status could be
resolved peacefully.

Chinese respondents expressed greater concern than their US counterparts
over global warming. Nearly seven in 10 in China said they worried about
climate change "a great deal" or a "fair amount" compared to about six
in 10 US respondents who took the same position.

Chinese respondents were far more optimistic than their US counterparts
about the state and direction of their nation. Nearly 90% of Chinese
said they believe their country is on the "right track" while nearly 60%
of US respondents said they believed their country was on the "wrong
track".

The survey found little confidence among respondents in both countries
that the mass media of the other portrayed their own nation accurately.
In addition, the survey found misperceptions among elites in both
countries about the views of their publics toward each other.

Elites in the US underestimate the favorable views of China held by the
general public, while elites in China believe the views held by their
compatriots of the US are more favorable than they actually are.

(Inter Press Service)