2024-09-05
16 分钟The Economist Hello, it's Alice Su here.
I'm the co-host of Drum Tower, our weekly podcast on China.
You're about to hear an article from the latest edition of The Economist.
Enjoy.
Should the world admire or fear China's model of governance?
Since this column was launched in September 2018,
that question has become more urgent as Xi Jinping declares it time for China to move closer to the centre stage of world affairs.
Today's China welcomes other countries to follow its pathway to modernisation.
Mr Xi, the most powerful Chinese leader in decades,
calls his one-party model efficient, equitable and dignified.
In case foreigners miss his coded message,
that competent government, equality and order matter more than freedoms,
officials boast of two major miracles that shaped China's rise,
namely fast economic development and long-term social stability.
During six and a half years in Beijing,
your columnist has watched China's swagger divide the world.
Most importantly, Sino-American relations have collapsed,
raising the prospect of a globe divided into rival camps,
even as other countries insist that they have no desire to pick sides.
Wary but profitable coexistence has turned into a contest for primacy in the 21st century.