‘Wolf Warrior diplomacy’ charge dismissed by China

Beijing, Dec. 6: China has sought to dismiss the use of the term “Wolf Warrior diplomacy”, which is used to describe confrontational rhetoric by its diplomats to ward off criticism on a host of issues, calling it yet another version of “China threat theory” being floated by Beijing's critics.

"Obviously, the "Wolf Warrior diplomacy" is actually another version of the "China threat" theory and another "discourse trap," whose purpose is to prevent China from fighting back, Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng said in the first official reaction to the widely-used phrase among international diplomats and media to highlight Beijing's aggressive posturing.

Chinese diplomats were once known for their lowkey approach in dealing with complex domestic and global issues. But their style changed in recent years as Beijing battled increasing global adversity on issues like Coronavirus, which became a pandemic after emerging from Wuhan, allegations of mass internment camps in Xinjiang and imposition of national security law in Hong Kong. Critics also say the change in style is fuelled by the pursuance of aggressive nationalism by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) under the leadership of President Xi Jinping.

Le said that as a responsible major country, China has always been a defender of the international order, a contributor to global governance and a provider of international public goods. It was a time when there seemed to be less inordinate criticism from the West. But the world and Chinese diplomats have changed, a write up in the CPC's aggressive tabloid Global Times said.

“In some Westerners' eyes, Chinese diplomats are now engaged in ‘Wolf Warrior' style diplomacy, named after a 2015 Chinese patriotic action film and its 2017 sequel. The change seemingly has made the West feel challenged," it said. The term was coined from the 2017 Hollywood Rambo style Chinese action film “Wolf Warrior 2”.