An unwise move - product of Cold War mentality

Obama is not the first to meet the Dalai Lama as a sitting U.S. president. Three others have done so since 1991.

This is because the Tibet Card is one up the sleeves of U.S. leaders who are still influenced by the Cold War mentality when dealing with China. There are also other cards in the stack.

International observers believe that so long as their Cold War mentality remain unchanged, the U.S.leaders are inclined to play these cards against China time and again.

"These figures would not have been welcomed or known in the West had the Western media not hyped them up as 'martyrs' or 'victims'," said Ingo Nentwig.

He said that some political forces in the West tend to view China through a colonialist perspective, and is reluctant to face the reality that China, as a sovereign state, is not to be budged by the West on any issues.

Obama has cashed in on his campaign promise for changes. Right now there is one more change for him to make that will benefit not only his party and himself, but China and the United States and the world at large as well for that matter. That is to discard the Cold War mentality and adopt a new and constructive way of thinking in handling U.S.-China ties.

Since the two sides have already set forth the guidelines for their partnership and cooperation in the Beijing Joint Declaration, what President Obama needs to do is to flesh out the guidelines with concrete actions.