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FROM THE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
O
ne of China’s founding fathers,
Sun Yat-sen, predicted that the
era of China’s prominence would
not be one of Yellow Peril (as the coun-
try was popularly described in the West)
but of Yellow Favour. The Chinese era
would not be one in which China threat-
ens the world, but enriches it. The China
Dream, as Liu Mingfu, then a colonel
in the People’s Liberation Army, noted
in his 2010 book of the same name, had
three distinct phases: catching up with
America, competing with America, and
becoming the world’s leading nation.
In many ways, China is now in the
second phase of this process of global
domination, and the world is worried.
On May 14, China’s leader, Xi Jinping,
in the presence of 29 foreign leaders
in Beijing, unveiled a “project for the
century’’, One Belt, One Road (OBOR),
which hopes to make Beijing the centre
of the global economy through a series
of infrastructure projects. India boycot-
ted it over political concerns on China’s
projects in PoK. The audacity of this $1
trillion project, now involving 60-plus
countries, is mind-boggling and reflects
the vaulting global ambition of China
to become a superpower. It makes me
wonder about our long-term strategic
plan for a place in the world. Is having
a seat on the UN Security Council our
only ambition?
The timing for China seems perfect.
America under Donald Trump is dis-
tracted by a surge of protectionist senti-
ment, and engagement with the world is
not top of the agenda for Brexit-affected
Europe. The Chinese plan involves both
economic hegemony as well as military
supremacy and follows three decades
of serious internal reform. Its global
mission is quite clear—secure resources
to fuel China’s rise, which it did through
its “resources for infrastructure” model,
build OBOR to consolidate its sway over
countries already in its economic orbit,
and protect its assets overseas with an
international role for its military. Be-
tween 1996 and 2005, China’s overseas
investments rose from $3 billion to $100
billion. Its share of global trade recorded
a similarly spectacular increase. In
2001, when China entered the World
Trade Organization, it accounted for less
than 5 per cent of global exports. Today,
it is the world’s largest exporter, with
a 14 per cent share. It is the largest or
second largest trading partner for more
than 100 countries and has emerged as
the biggest source of foreign investment
for nations ranging from Venezuela and
Angola to Nepal and Sri Lanka. In add-
ition, China’s state-owned enterprises
are building infrastructure all over the
world—from railways in Africa to mines
in Latin America, dams in Myanmar,
and ports across the Indian Ocean.
China is also building a blue-water navy
to protect its overseas interests. Last
year, it opened its first naval base in
Africa. More are on the way.
China’s new ambitions will fun-
damentally change the nature of its
relations with the rest of the world. For
the past three decades, reports india
today’s Beijing-based Associate Editor
Ananth Krishnan, China’s diplomacy
has followed Deng Xiaoping’s cautious
maxim, “tao guang yang hui”, which
means “hide your brightness and seek
obscurity”. The new phrase of choice
in Beijing, he says, is “ fen fa you wei”,
which means to forge ahead, underlin-
ing Beijing’s desire “to proactively shape”
its external environment. The implica-
tions for India are enormous, especially
given the increasing closeness between
China and Pakistan. Should India bide
its time like China did and take up a
non-confrontational approach till it be-
comes a much stronger nation or should
it aggressively counter China in which-
ever spheres it feels threatened and build
a counter-narrative? I, for one, am a
strong votary of India becoming the best
version of itself before it tries to be better
than China. Or as the Chinese would say,
dig the well before you are thirsty.
(Aroon Purie)
J U N E 5, 2 017
INDIA TODAY
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