In fact, the relative decline of the US means it is not just China, India and Brazil that have become stronger, but all nations; and that is something worth celebrating.

It also leads to the question of whether the US is willing to share power with the rising rest.

The US' anxiety about losing its global dominance and leadership is obvious.

The phrase "American leadership" was repeated time and again in President Barack Obama's speech at West Point on May 28 and National Security Advisor Susan Rice's talk at a security forum in Washington this Wednesday.

At Wednesday's security forum, Wolfgang Ischinger, a former German ambassador to the US, pointed out that leadership, if not by force, needs trust and credibility, and that trust between the US and Europe has been damaged, following the revelations of the National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.

Ischinger also called on the US and Europe to work with China and other countries to reform global institutions such as the United Nations Security Council, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to adapt to the changing world.

I guess many Chinese would welcome the US leadership, so long as that leadership was not just in its own interests and it was not being used to rally other nations against China, especially when bilateral relations have hit a low point.

The author, based in Washington, is deputy editor of China Daily USA. chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com