Harvard University's Joseph Nye, who coined the term soft power, has described it as a type of currency different from force or payoffs to engage in cooperation, or an attraction to shared values and the justness and duty of contributing to the achievement of those values. In laymen's language, the values and tenets associated with soft power could probably boil down to the protection of citizens' rights, democracy and the rule of law, with safeguarding of people's interests being at the core.

The search for the lost plane with 239 people on board, including 154 Chinese passengers, is a good opportunity for China to showcase its people-first philosophy of governance. Its efforts have won accolades from home and abroad, which have ranged from being "determined and forceful" in its response to taking "the high moral ground" to being a "responsible superpower".

This is not the first time China is carrying out a large operation to help its citizens in trouble overseas. In 2011, it evacuated more than 35,800 of its nationals from Libya during the political crisis in that country. The operation, according to Chinese media reports, involved 91 domestic chartered flights, 12 military flights, five cargo ferries, one escort ship, 35 foreign chartered flights, 11 trips by foreign passenger liners and some 100 bus runs.

Yet the ongoing multinational search for MH370, arguably one of the largest in aviation history, has attracted much more global attention because of the potential loss of many human lives, daunting technical challenges and an increasingly intricate international situation.

However long and costly the mission may be, China will continue to lead it full throttle. It must.

The writer is editor-at-large of China Daily. E-mail: dr.baiping@gmail.com

(China Daily 04/19/2014 page11)