Navigating the Wolves: Understanding China's Wolf Warrior Diplomacy
‘Wolf Warrior’ diplomacy, which thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic, is epitomized by the assertive actions of Chinese diplomats, challenging diplomatic norms. Its name comes from a patriotic action movie series about the Chinese military, Wolf Warrior, and its practices are a marked departure from former president Hu Jintao’s policies of peaceful rise. The peaceful rise policy was defined largely by China’s aim for common peace and prosperity with the world; Hu stressed that China's rise should not be perceived as a threat to the world. Although viewed positively domestically, it faces criticism internationally. Case studies, including COVID-19 origin debates, illustrate the complexities of Wolf Warrior diplomacy. This article explores the dichotomy of its reception, shedding light on its implications for China's global role and the dynamics of international diplomacy.
One of the most prominent cases of Wolf Warrior diplomacy is the controversy over the origins of COVID. While US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo alleged that the 'Wuhan virus' leaked from a laboratory in China, Chinese state media levied accusations that the virus instead originated in the US. Zhao Lijian, one of the most outspoken and prominent Chinese Wolf Warrior diplomats, commented on X, suggesting that it might have been the US army who brought the pandemic to Wuhan, and he implied that the US owes the public an explanation. Zhao has more than 600,000 followers on X and is constantly tweeting, retweeting, and liking seemingly anything that promotes or defends China. On another of China’s most prominent social media platforms, Weibo, Zhao’s remark has been viewed more than 160 million times, alongside screenshots of the original post on X. According to Suisheng Zhao's book The Dragon Roars Back, the conspiracy theory temporarily disappeared from official media after the Chinese ambassador to Washington, Cui Tiankai, told American media that the job of finding the source of the virus is for scientists.
This did not dispel speculations made by Chinese propagandists, who have further propagated the conspiracy suggesting that COVID was manufactured and leaked from a military installation in Frederick, Maryland. This installation was once the centre of the US biological weapons program and houses biomedical labs conducting research on viruses, including Ebola and smallpox. On X, Zhao Lijian tweeted a song by the nationalistic Chinese rap group CD Rev, implying that nefarious plots are being orchestrated by the lab in Fort Detrick. This call by Zhao has been echoed by Chinese diplomats based in other countries and by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, which aired a report titled The Dark History Behind Fort Detrick. On Weibo, related hashtags have garnered more than 100 million views.
Acts of Wolf Warrior diplomacy have not been well-received by the international community, as is particularly evident in cases such as the handling of the COVID situation, which has sparked hostility and anti-Chinese sentiment. According to The New York Times, the spread of conspiracy theories has been detrimental to bilateral relations between China and the US. Julian B. Gewirtz, a scholar at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard, argues that these Wolf Warrior diplomats seem to have adopted the ‘Donald J. Trump school of diplomacy’, where both sides engage in spreading disinformation and propagandistic claims about the other, ultimately undermining China's efforts to be perceived positively globally. This issue is not limited to just the rivalry between the US and China; in another article by the Financial Times, Gideon Rachman contends that Wolf Warrior diplomacy is counterproductive and alienates potential partners of China, pointing to China’s deteriorating relations with Australia and the EU. Chinese officials have increasingly accused Australia of racism and war crimes, releasing 14 grievances against the country and imposing tariffs. Following EU sanctions against Xinjiang and Beijing's countersanctions against European officials and institutions, the European Parliament froze the ratification of a major investment agreement between China and the EU.
At home in China, this has been viewed in a significantly different and positive light, especially among politicians. In Suisheng Zhao’s book, he argues that Chinese diplomats and political figures generally take pride in being Wolf Warriors. For instance, Chinese Ambassador to France Lu Shaye perceives Wolf Warrior diplomacy as a reflection of China's rightful rise in national strength, asserting that China can no longer conceal its capabilities in the face of suppression by the US and the West. Viewing its previous approach of peaceful diplomacy as ‘lamb diplomacy’, Wolf Warrior diplomacy instead showcases China's capabilities and knowledge. Within China, Wolf Warrior diplomacy is seen as a natural response to Western attempts of containment. An editorial in the Global Times argues that Western diplomats face disgrace as they experience China's Wolf Warrior diplomacy first-hand. As it declares, ‘the days when China can be put in a submissive position are long gone’.
With Zhao Lijian's reassignment last year and the onset of a post-COVID era, China's sudden surge in aggressiveness seems to have, in part, subsided. While some speculations suggest that China is recognizing the negative repercussions of this controversial rise, indicating a broader shift back towards aligning with China's earlier tone of upholding peace and prosperity, the article instead suggests that a domestic perspective is of equal significance in understanding such a broader shift in China's approach to international relations. Despite the potential influence of external pressures from the international community on China's decisions and its downfall of assertiveness, the views of Chinese diplomats, alongside factors of nationalism, internal expectations, and pressures, largely influence how China acts. Wolf Warrior diplomacy ultimately highlights the need to understand diplomacy on two levels, domestic and international, with its causes and implications, to grasp the full picture of its rise and fall.
Image courtesy of US Department of State via Wikimedia, ©2015. Some rights reserved.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the wider St. Andrews Foreign Affairs Review team.
