Key insights
- The author argues that US media's translation of China's warning regarding Taiwan as 'conflict' is inaccurate and escalatory. A more nuanced translation suggests 'litigation' or 'point of contention.' The author suggests that misinterpretations could lead to unnecessary geopolitical tensions and potential market mispricing if Wall Street reacts negatively to the perceived threat.
You may have heard tonight and in the coming days from US media news outlets reporting that China warned the US about a possible "conflict" if Taiwan is mishandled.
IT'S WRONG TRANSLATION. Mandarin is an imperial, very subtle and nuanced language, that tries to avoid drama or absolutisms, especially when hosting guests.
THE BETTER TRANSLATION should have been closer to: "a litigation or a point of contention or friction". I'm translating from French to English here.
This error in translation was noted yesterday on BFM TV (French business news media), by a China and Mandarin language expert (I believe Alain Bauer from France) who followed closely the broadcast event and noted that mistake right away.
I hope our POTUS got a better translation because the fate of the world is at stake. It all starts with language and accurate translation and the subtle nuances in between. If not, pls misundersta'ding build up.
Unfortunately, poor language translation may lead eventually to unnecessary tragic events. For example, it is well understood today by historians that the 2nd atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, may have been unnecessary. President Truman's decision back then, was based on conclusions from inaccurate translations by analysts. We don't want to repeat the same sort of mistakes because of poor language skills.
As a result, if WallStreet tanks in the coming days because of this poorly translated piece of news then it's likely a... mispricing :)!
Update1: I removed an incorrect fact that it was translated by US news and added more nuances in my post.
Update 2: "Conflict" in French, means the same as in English I believe: i.e., a direct confrontation, hence war in this geopolitical context...
But the French translation of what was said in Mandarin, according to the language expert, was "contentieux" if I recall. But even the expert acknowledged not being perfect translation, but it was much closer to what the Chinese really meant.
A "contentieux" in English is a point of disagreement, friction or discord. It's semantics that is by design vague to leave room for diplomacy and flexibility. Nothing less, nothing more. It DOES NOT mean conflict/war directly.