Sinologist: Confident China feels 'neither inferior nor superior' at world stage

China has gained full confidence in its own strengths, arriving at a balanced stance where it feels "neither inferior nor superior" to the rest of the world, said Marianne Dunlop, a sinologist and professor of Chinese at the Confucius Institute of Artois of France.

Dunlop argues in a newly co-authored book that establishing a more just, multipolar international order is an urgent necessity – one that she says will benefit all countries. In an interview with CGTN, she added that she fully supports the China-proposed Global Governance Initiative (GGI).

Below is CGTN's written interview via email with the French sinologist. The conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

CGTN: You were in China at the very start of the reform and opening-up period, living and studying in Shenyang and Nanjing from 1978 to 1980. From that vantage point, what do you see as the single biggest change – or continuity – in how China views the outside world today compared with that era?

Dunlop: In 1978, we were the first Western students in China. People looked at us as if we were curious creatures, and crowds gathered around us. But there was no hostility. The passengers were instructed to give us their seats on public transport, which made us feel terribly uncomfortable, and in restaurants we were separated from Chinese customers by a screen.

Today, of course, the situation has changed considerably. But what has not changed is that we are still considered "precious guests." The people here are incredibly helpful and friendly.

I think China has gained confidence in its own strengths and feels neither inferior nor superior to the rest of the world.

CGTN: You are deeply engaged with Chinese language and Chinese culture in your work, through your teaching and translation. In your view, what is the fundamental philosophical difference between Beijing's approach to diplomacy and that of the West?

Dunlop: Chinese and Western thinking are fundamentally different. The West has an unfortunate tendency to want to impose its own worldview on the world, from the Crusades of the eleventh to thirteenth centuries, to the evangelical missions of the eighteenth century and beyond, to colonization, which claimed to bring civilization to the "barbarians." When one studies Chinese history in depth, one sees no examples of this kind.

CGTN: Your new book, "When France Wakes Up to China: The Long March Towards a Multipolar World", discusses France and the West's anxiety about China. In your view, what does this anxiety reflect? Do you think it signals "a crisis of confidence," as some observers suggest, within the West itself?

Dunlop: Faced with the "decline of the West," an expression that is already more than a century old – or more precisely the "defeat of the West" – we see a reflex of tension, closure and hostility, which can lead to dangerous behavior.

Sometimes even people who are favorable towards China imagine that global rebalancing and the advent of a multipolar world will, at least initially, have negative consequences for their well-being. I do not share this opinion. On the contrary, peaceful and harmonious relations will be beneficial to all. Except perhaps for a handful of our so-called "elites."

CGTN: Many Western critics, as noted in this year's Munich Security Report, fear that a multipolar world could lead to "disorder and confrontation." China, meanwhile, promotes an "equal and orderly" multipolar world, underpinned by the GGI. Do you see any alignment between your vision of a multipolar world and the GGI?

Dunlop: Our book explains and demonstrates in detail the urgent need to establish a more just world order, a multipolar world. We fully support the China-proposed GGI. We also propose that France join the BRICS!

CGTN: France was the first major country in the West to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China, in 1964, during the depths of the Cold War. The Chinese leadership refers to China and France as "special friends and win-win partners," highlighting the "special relationship" between the two countries. In your view, what principle has been the true enduring core of this "special relationship?"

Dunlop: France does indeed have assets that should enable it to adopt a sensible and constructive policy and relations with China, and from there perhaps bring the European Union along with it. It was in France that Chinese language and civilization studies first developed, with the creation of the Ecole des Langues Orientales (School of Oriental Languages) in the early 19th century, after the French Revolution.

However, for the past twenty years or so, its leaders, who are increasingly contested, have adopted a position of submission and servility towards the United States, which prevents it from pursuing an independent policy.