Daily Times

It has been a favourite heading of the academics and the media gurus in the developed West for a long time now that ‘China is rising’ however, they shy away from acknowledging that China has already risen.

At the same time, I have argued that the US-led West wasted too much time, lives, and material resources on wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan. This time was well utilised by both China and Russia – Russia for consolidation and China for development. Both of them are geared up now to challenge the prevalent international system led by the Western powers headed by the US. As the article’s title suggests, I will mainly concentrate on China’s rise in this short write-up.

Historically, once Mao consolidated China as a responsible state, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and part of the P-5 exclusive nuclear club, the country just needed a leadership that would open its gates for the rest of the world. Therefore, after the death of its Paramount leader, Mao Zedong in 1976, Deng Xiaoping rose to power and proved to be a game-changer.

Deng spearheaded the process of reforms and opened China to the outside world to come and invest. Deng offered such lucrative terms for investment that no businessmen could ill afford to ignore. Cheap labour, uninterrupted energy supplies, minimal bureaucratic hurdles, and above all a promising modern infrastructure necessary for manufacturing and commercial activities. The successive Chinese leaders made significant contributions to the country’s development and growth.

Each sector of the economy, from small to large-scale manufacturing industry, agriculture to feed a billion-plus population, infrastructure like road-rail and ports, energy through building large dams and renewables, mining, and utilities, was given equal importance. “In 2023, value-added industrial output accounted for nearly 40 per cent of China’s GDP – more than double that of the United States (18 percent).”

China’s growing influence in the Global South, which has a membership of over 130 states is again a matter of concern for the US-led West’s hegemonic designs.

While the US was busy in wars and conflicts, China quietly increased its productivity in each domain: economy, defence, geopolitics, technology, cyber, and education. Once China achieved the primary objectives of a sustained growth rate and poverty alleviation, it decided to embark upon a journey to expand its area of political influence that best suited its strategic interests.

For instance, to resolve the issue of the Malacca Dilemma, China decided to open a much smaller logistics route through Pakistan’s port of Gwadar for its least developed Western part. Likewise, introduced One-Belt One Road (OBOR) or the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in September 2013 by the incumbent leader Xi Jinping for an integrated economic development to improve global connectivity and cooperation across different continents in Asia, Africa, and Europe.

China planned and is already investing in infrastructure development projects of over 150 countries under BRI. These projects include road, rail, ports, shipping, mining, energy, and public amenities like education and health, particularly in Africa, thereby expanding its areas of influence and popularity among the masses of these states.

In the realm of geopolitics, the formation of the Shangai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), have become a cause of serious concerns for the dominance of the US-led Western world. Since its inception in 2001, the SCO has expanded its membership to embrace all the regional countries.

At present, there are nine member states: the Republic of India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the People’s Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan. Moreover, it has three Observer states and 14 Dialogue partners.

Likewise, the BRICS has also expanded itself from the permanent five to nine by admitting Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. More and more countries have shown interest in joining BRICS because it aims to enhance productive engagements with regional and extra-regional countries. BRICS is seriously contemplating introducing its currency to challenge dollar dominance. Should that happen in the coming years, the US will lose its sole superpower status even if it can maintain the most powerful military in the world. It is necessary to highlight that the US debt due to its involvement in wars and conflicts since the beginning of the 21st Century has been rising steadily and has now reached an alarming level of USD 35 trillion.

On the other hand, the Chinese economy is expected to overtake the US as the largest economy in the world by 2028. China’s growing influence in the Global South which has a membership of over 130 states is again a matter of concern for the US-led West’s hegemonic designs. If African nations like Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali are challenging the interventions of their former masters, it is not without the political, and economic support of Russia and China.

Therefore, in my opinion, the academics and practitioners of the US-led West should openly accept that China is not rising but it has already risen. Only then they may be able to offer a doable strategy to deal with the evolving world order.

The writer of this article has authored three international books: “Nuclear Deterrence and Conflict Management Between India and Pakistan” “South Asia Needs Hybrid Peace” and “Understanding Sun Tzu and the Art of Hybrid War.”

The writer of this article has authored three international books: “Nuclear Deterrence and Conflict Management Between India and Pakistan” “South Asia Needs Hybrid Peace” and “Understanding Sun Tzu and the Art of Hybrid War.”