Renewing the French connection

French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in China on Wednesday on a three-day visit, during which he met with Chinese leaders in Beijing and will inaugurate the French Pavilion at the World Expo in Shanghai. From my understanding, the Chinese people have been cool to the news. Given the friction between China and France over the past two years, their reaction is not a surprise.

Sarkozy's visit, above all else, is an act of proper reconciliation to the hostile events that took place in 2008. In the lead-up to the Beijing Olympic Games, France severely damaged its relations with China because of Sarkozy's meeting with the Dalai Lama and several attempted sabotages of the Olympic torch relay.

Moral superiority, perhaps a lingering vestige of its colonialist past, continues to guide France's diplomatic relations. Despite its checkered past, which has left catastrophic effects on Africa and parts of Asia, France still acts like a moral "big brother" to countries like China.