China comes out on "The tomb of Empires"

Your blogger was in Afghanistan just before the Russians in his wandering days, what an adventure that was. It was different then;when I got sick (Amoebic dysentery) the professionals at Kabul Hospital were marvelous, efficent and free andthe city was lovely. A planned day trip to Bamian was delayed when a addicted european stole everything I had, which, remarkably, I recovered in two hours by a energised determination that can only be described as remarkable.....but thats a story for another day.

Our interest in the "Tomb of empires" dates from then.


"Compare the two leadership styles and learn, because this relationship will guide the world:

"Observe calmly; secure our position; cope with affairs calmly; hide our capacities and bide our time; be good at maintaining a low profile; and never claim leadership." -- China's former Communist Party Leader, Deng Xiaoping.

"But I can say that the president of the United States said during his campaign and in the debates that if there is an actionable target, of a high-level Al Qaeda personnel, that he would not hesitate to use action to deal with that" -- Vice President Joseph Biden.
nulwee :: The Middle Kingdom Ends Its Silence On Obama & Afghanistan.
There is a fascinating article about China's Afghanistan policy in the Asia Times, written by Indian fmr. Ambassador MK Bhadrakumar. After long avoidance, China's given voice to its interests in the Himalayan foothills. Despite the years of "Red Menace" hype, China prefers to act out of a path of least resistance, being an anti-US located between (US-Russia) extremes and neighboring conflicts. For this reason, the old moniker "The Middle Kingdom" retains relevance. Bhadrakumar begins with the Xiaoping quote, and ends with this paragraph:

It seems China has no problem with such an agenda [of occupation]. China will "hide its capacities" - to quote Deng - even as the US and Russia collide and negate each other and eventually drop down in exhaustion. As The People's Daily concludes, Afghanistan is known as the "tomb of empires". Therefore, China must focus on securing its position and simply bide its time - a strategy Deng could surely appreciate."

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