I read in an April 12 article in Lianhe Zaobao that Chinese leaders should be more aggressive in defending China's image abroad in order to avoid the fate of the Soviet Union, which was labeled an "evil empire" by the United States.

While it is true that the Soviet Union was demonized by the West, there is no consensus on China's image among Western nations.

After World War II, some leftist may have been skeptical about China, but were far from hostile. Then in the 1950s, the Korean War triggered a tide of US-led propaganda against China.

In the late 1970s, when China opened up, Western countries began changing their attitudes and readjusting their policies. Western journalists took home positive images of the Chinese people's dramatically changing lives. Relations between the US and China improved.

Since the end of 1980s, however, the tide has changed again as Western media and governments began to criticize China on human rights.

At the same time, as more foreigners visited China, they were better able to share their personal experiences of China and its rapid development.

In recent years, theories have cropped up in Western academic circles about the "China threat", "China's collapse" and China as an unstable factor to world development. The fact is that more countries are banking on China, given its economic growth, to do more for world peace, development and environmental protection.

Some Chinese scholars think that the Western media is creating China's international image. In order to improve this image, they believe that we need to change their deep-rooted prejudice and skepticism.

Actually, one of the principles of Western media is to find fault and negative angles.

So it is up to the Chinese people themselves - rather than Western media reports - to change China's image around the world.

When traveling abroad, Chinese should disseminate information about China. We Chinese must rely on ourselves to improve our country's image.

At present, there are several specious views about the Chinese: that Chinese officials are too stilted on diplomatic occasions, that the Chinese media does a poor job in disseminating China's views abroad, and that the Chinese people still lack self-confidence as citizens of an increasingly powerful nation. Some also think that a nouveau riche mentality harms China's image.

The truth is the exact opposite: The Chinese people have never been so confident. Today, more and more Chinese feel on an equal footing with other nations in the international family, with no special rights or obligations. This kind of attitude, neither humble nor arrogant, is the hallmark of a real power.

We are now in a totally different era from that of the Cold War, so there is no need to resort to an aggressive stance.

For now, China needs to carry out its social reforms, and to be more pro-active in responding to criticism by Western media.

Chinese scholars should also refute the criticisms of Western academics.

Although we are open to different points of view, we should respond to wrong opinions. Only better communications can remove misunderstandings and change China's image.

Common Chinese should not take a few foreigners' opinions about China as the views of the entire Western world. Some Western media use a few individual Chinese to represent the entire country. We should avoid the same mistake.