“China and the new world order are about to break out of their cocoon,” said Xi Jinping in a speech at The Belt and Road Initiative in July 2017. In his opening remarks, he described his government’s vision for the initiative as a way to boost its global influence and bring prosperity to all people through economic growth and international cooperation. Its development depends on achieving long-term peace and stability in Asia, which will take time and effort. Yet the Chinese leader sees no obstacle to that ambition. On October 15, 2022, President Joe Biden announced the launch of an ambitious $1 trillion project to promote infrastructure connectivity in the Indo-Pacific region.
President Biden visits two countries — Kiribati and Samoa – with former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to discuss climate change, health issues, food security, climate resilience, poverty alleviation, education and more. Photo courtesy of the White House National Climate Change Portal.
The current pandemic has laid bare how intertwined the globe is, and how much it affects one part of it directly. For example, Beijing is working assiduously on developing vaccines, drugs and therapeutics, while simultaneously testing their efficacy and applying them to combat COVID-19. Likewise, Taiwan enjoys a better deal than most other nations in regards to trade and investment opportunities, thanks to close ties to Washington. Meanwhile, the United States has taken advantage of the Russia-Ukraine conflict to secure billions of dollars from European Union states following Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February. While these events have been significant, they still don’t explain why there is now such widespread concern over China’s intentions toward the rest of the world.
As China builds up its presence across the Pacific Islands, it is becoming increasingly clear that their regional ambitions can be used to destabilize or even subvert the status quo by pressuring allies or using the PLA’s massive military force. It is also important to note that this same pattern is playing out between communist regimes in mainland China and authoritarian countries like North Korea and Russia, and between those who profess to hold democratic ideals but suppress dissent.
An image captured during the March 2020 protest against anti-virus measures in Wuhan, Hubei province. Photos courtesy of AP.
The West fears China’s expansionism as one reason behind high tensions in the South China Sea and elsewhere in the Pacific. As I have covered previously, China considers itself a separate entity with sovereign rights unlike the USA, although it remains subject to some overlapping jurisdiction. As for India, it continues working closely with both Washington and Beijing to make sure relations remain favorable and to push back on any attempts to undermine its sovereignty. But while India may not be keen on taking sides in the ongoing war in Ukraine, China and Russian actions, particularly around Taiwan, may hurt India’s regional interests.
While there may be several reasons for China’s rise, one explanation may be that China has managed to gain acceptance among major powers and emerging economies as well as become an indispensable partner and supplier of various categories of products, including telecommunications, digital media, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and biotech. With rising wealth inequality, Chinese people need to prioritize investments in technological innovation, especially in health care, education and social welfare. If successful, this could help lift millions of lives from extreme poverty. More importantly, it stands to create substantial benefits for investors in advanced technology manufacturing, while increasing access to cheap labor. This makes China well positioned to use technologies such as cryptocurrency mining and blockchain to further develop its geopolitical reach.
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