Dialogue with A.M.Asgarkhani
- Source: Global Times
- [10:51 November 13 2009]
- Comments
Dr A.M.Asgarkhani, Professor of Tehran University, Attorney at Law in International Arbitration
Global Times: Barack Obama is the first US president to visit China in the first year of his term. High-level officials from both sides have interacted frequently in this year. Do you think it means that the US’ policy on China has changed? Is it Obama’s expedient measures due to the financial crisis?
Asgarkhani: The coming to power of Obama and his policy is due to some exigency and expedient measures that the US system is trying to arrange. Actually, the fact that Obama came to power was a measure of the US system to change the US political window both inside and outside the United States. Inside the US, American the political system had a number of problems, for example, unemployment, financial crisis, terrorism and security. On the international level, the prestige of the US was badly damaged due to unilateralism, its intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan, in the Middle East, and some extra territorial regulations in terms of imposing sanctions and monitoring surveillance systems, human trafficking from European countries by the CIA, and its illegal intelligence cooperation with the European agents. It is the American political system that tries to arrange the American political window change. So Obama needs to reshuffle its political stand on the international level. There is some imbalance between China and the US. China is the center of production power, and the US is the center of consumption power. The balance has shifted, and there is imbalance in demand and supply. The US budget deficit is a problem. The US argues that China is a both supporter and at the same time, a spoiler, for the American economic system. That is why the US is approaching China. It reminds me of Nixon and Kissinger’s visit to China. In those days, the visit was primarily based on the balance of power. It was much more military and political. But this time, it’s mostly because of the economic problems that they have faced. So the fact of the matter is this.
