That China and the Obama administration have begun their engagement on a quarrelsome note on the currency issue is not necessarily an indicator of the direction of their bilateral relations in the next four years. For Obama’s two predecessors in the White House began as lions roaring against China but ended up as friendly purring cats.

President Bill Clinton began his first term in the early 1990s by denouncing Chinese leaders as “butchers of Beijing” for their crackdown on Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. During his eight years at the helm, Clinton gave China the permanent access to the American market, eased its entry into the World Trade Organisation, and declared Beijing as America’s strategic partner in Asia.

George W. Bush came to office declaring that China was not a strategic partner of the United States, but a potential competitor. As his attention turned towards the Middle East after 911, Bush avoided a confrontation with China. When he was leaving office this month, Bush and his aides were taking credit for building a productive relationship with China.

What we can say at this moment is that the balance of power between America and China has steadily altered over the last sixteen years, giving Beijing a lot more leeway in the relationship. A recent cartoon in the Chinese press summed up the new situation. It showed Obama dressed as ‘super-man’ asking his Chinese ‘girl friend’ for money, yet again. The coy girl friend says she would be prudent rather than obedient when it comes to money.

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