Re: Reuters reported that China’s foreign minister Wang Yi recently softened his tone on the U.S.-China relations. In his speech, Wang appeared to be “seeking common ground while reserving differences.” Wang claimed that the two countries should not attempt to change each other, as “China cannot and will not become another America,” adding that a socialist system is suited to China and “its people’s choice.”

Wang Yi’s speech made a reference to the political system. His claim that “China will not and cannot become another America” clearly intends to appeal to those on the left, many of whom have long held that U.S. foreign policies are based on illiberal hegemony and an “imperialist mentality.”

However, in this case, it is delusional to take Wang’s word seriously. Politically, China has mostly been left alone in its own way in the past 30 years. It is still in its top-down authoritarian form that lacks the legitimacy to rule, unlike one provided by an electoral mechanism. On the other hand, forcing a change has not been a prerequisite for the West to engage with China during the same period.

So why a sudden rush of “imperialist impetus” from the U.S. now? Some may argue that this is because of President Trump, but just turning around and taking a quick look at all other countries in the Five Eyes as well as at China’s neighbors proves that such an argument is flawed.

The West is standing up to China because it is crucial for the West’s own self-preservation. The left needs to be reminded that whatever rights they enjoy and whatever activism they preach and practice are, first and foremost, founded on the very fact that they live in a society with civil liberties. And those civil liberties are not to be taken for granted—this is something they are fully aware of when it comes to President Trump but conveniently ignored elsewhere.