When the US puts 60% of its navy near China and is allied with countries around China putting military pressure on China, the Chinese people have to be nationalism to be prepared for potential war. Chinese nationalism was at an all-time high during the Japanese invasion. Chinese remember the century of humiliation, and they don’t want to be humiliated again.
Nationalism used to be a commendatory term during WWII as many countries pursued independence from Western colonization. That was the period when the Great British Empire collapsed and the US and Soviets competed for global hegemony. After the cold war in 1992, nationalism gradually becomes a derogatory term.
When the United States passed the Patriot Act, did anybody point out that it was nationalist? Nationalism in the present world order has a very special meaning: American nationalism is not nationalism but internationalism because the US dominates the globe. Even though every American politician swears to God that they are fighting for the American national interest, and no one said it is nationalism. In fact, American nationalism already overflowed the world.
Nationalism under such circumstances has a narrow meaning that a country that disobeys the US is called nationalism. This is a typical double standard or American exceptionalism. If we have a uniform standard, Trump is the strongest nationalist in the world, and the United States is the most nationalist country.
After the Thirty Years War, the Westphalian system became an international norm. Sovereignty states had since been the players in international politics. UN was established under such a system. Every nation is for its own national interest. This is called realpolitik.
In opposition to nationalism is internationalism. The former Eastern Bloc was Communist Internationalism. Countries with Internationalism denounce nationalism and acted according to Communist International instead of national interest. So we see that many countries sacrificed their national interest for Communist International.
Those who oppose nationalism today are asking other countries to sacrifice their national interest for the sake of US hegemony. NATO countries are doing exactly this. They sacrificed European economic interest by creating the refugee crisis in North Africa and the Middle East, for maintaining the US hegemony. They damage their own economy to put sanctions on Russia, just like Eastern Block countries sacrificed their national interest for Communist Internationalism during the cold war. The only difference is that today US national interest is in place of internationalism: this is imperialism.
Now the word Nationalism has a bad connotation in the mainstream media. Therefore, when the US manufactures color revolutions to fan separatist movements, such as in the Kosovo War, the mainstream media does not name those separatist movements Nationalism. Instead, they call it Freedom and Democracy.
