A Xinhua commentary penned by Wang Xiaoshi warning that unrest in China would leave it worse off than the Soviet Union has been hotly discussed online recently. The idea of this article is in line with mainstream views, but failed to give a professional description of the current situation of Russia. Liberals have hit out at the article, but they do not have a professional knowledge of Russia's fate either. The belief that the collapse of the Soviet Union has benefited the Russian people is a naïve one.

The unrest that finally led to the Soviet collapse is an alarming warning for China. China's own history proves that the country cannot afford to fall into chaos. Unrest will only be accompanied by war and blood.

Russia has stepped out of the immense suffering at the beginning of the Soviet collapse and is now walking toward prosperity. But what have division and economic stagnation brought to this country? Russia has been categorized as a second-class power and no longer enjoys a position of leadership in global affairs.

That a couple of years' chaos is an appropriate price Russia should pay for the current affluence is a short-sighted view. Trying to avoid chaos is the sacred responsibility of the leadership of any country. Will mainstream society dare to bear such a huge cost?

The collapse of the Soviet Union came as the regime lost control over the reform process. This is a lesson for all countries. Western scholars view the leadership led by Mikhail Gorbachev as a weak one. It is only ideological leanings that prompt some to lavish praise on him.

We should observe Russia's development mode by shaking off the influence of the Soviet collapse. Russia has taken neither a Western nor an Eastern path. What happened there only relates to its own geographical characteristics and culture.

Russia's overall level of social development is still higher than that of China, yet the gap has diminished drastically in the past two decades. Meanwhile, Russia's status on the world stage has become comparatively lower. These are irrefutable facts.

It is also worth pointing out that the world has completely different opinions on reforms undertaken by China and those by the Soviet Union. Although the West apparently dislikes China, mainstream opinion has spoken highly of China's reforms, while reforms led by Gorbachev never received such praise.

Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, is gradually moving far from the political path taken by Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin. Russia's prosperity today is the result of many factors such as Putin's leadership and the country's advantages in terms of resources. It is not accurate to attribute Russia's achievements to the Soviet fall and democratization.

Comparatively, China, being the world's second largest economy, is still a poor country. It is grappling with this problem. Neither China nor Russia has fulfilled their tasks of transformation. The two neighbors should watch each other so as to avoid following in the steps of the Soviet Union.