It's futile for US to blame China to cover its own misdeeds

It is not unusual for senior US officials to throw jabs at China in their public speeches while traveling abroad.

President Barack Obama and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton did that when they visited Africa years ago. It happened at a time when a rising China quickly became Africa's largest trade partner and investor, especially in infrastructure, an area increasingly ignored by Western nations.

When Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel spoke at the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin on March 22, he followed the same pattern - criticizing China without any self-criticism.