US must match Pence's positive remarks with the right deeds

In his speech on China-US relations at the Woodrow Wilson International Center on Thursday, US Vice-President Mike Pence repeated much of the criticism he had leveled at China in his first such speech at the Hudson Institute on Oct 4 last year. In particular, he criticized China's handling of the "one country, two systems" policy in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Pence has positioned himself as a moral preacher for and behavior examiner of other countries, which is not conducive to improving bilateral relations. This is not to say the United States has no right to comment on other countries' behaviors. But a country should look at its own record before criticizing others.

Take for instance the US' invasion of Iraq. The US' military offensive not only led to a massive humanitarian crisis in Iraq but also caused unprecedented upheaval in the Middle East, including the refugee crisis and the disappearance of some 300,000 Iraqis. So before speaking on China or any other country, Pence and his fellow US officials should analyze what the US has done in the Middle East.