Obama must work to woo Chinese audience

• Source: Global Times
• [02:59 November 11 2009]
• Comments

With less than one week to go before US President Barack Obama's visit to China, the "Obama effect" has started to show.

The autobiographical novel of his half brother, Mark Okoth Obama Ndesandjo, entitled Nairobi to Shenzhen, is getting a lot of publicity and is likely to sell well in China.

But President Obama has a lot of work to do before he can really woo Chinese crowds.

Despite being a charismatic celebrity and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Obama is going to be greeted by a Chinese audience that is taking an increasingly rational and mature attitude toward foreign political stars, and cares about its own interests more than ever.

There is no doubt as to the significance Obama's first visit to China since taking office in January will have in Sino-US relations.

The agenda for the trip will cover a wide range of topics, both bilateral and global, and could help create the political momentum needed to push forward efforts between the two nations. Any joint decisions China and the US make are bound to impact the rest of the world, which is why the two countries are sometimes called the "G2."

There is nothing unusual in the US side putting a basket of issues on the agenda before any important meeting with China. As Obama said in his Monday interview with the Reuters news agency, economic imbalances, market opening and climate change are among the top issues he intends to raise with Chinese leaders.

It is no surprise either that Chinese people have a "wish list" of their own to discuss with the US president during his upcoming visit. With China's rising clout in the new world order, Chinese should have an equal say in Sino-US relations, as their own immediate interests are at stake.

With stiff tariffs recently imposed on Chinese-made steel pipes and on tires, protectionism is certainly one of the top matters that Chinese people hope Obama will take action on.

While Obama may be pressured by high domestic unemployment to succumb to protectionism, protectionist measures do nothing but harm free trade.