America’s allies are flocking to China

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  The Economist.

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  Hello and welcome to Editors Picks.

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  I'm Jeremy Page, co-host of our China podcast, Drum Tower.

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  You're about to hear an article from the latest issue of The Economist, handpicked by our team.

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  I hope you enjoy listening.

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  One of the first things that impressed Richard Nixon on his historic trip to Beijing in 1972 was the honour guard of tall soldiers.

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  Each man turned his head slowly as I passed,

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  creating an almost hypnotic sense of movement in the massed ranks, he later recalled.

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  It was a projection of power and coordination,

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  one that remains identical for visiting foreign leaders today,

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  though the soldiers are now even taller and include women in their ranks.

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  Recent months have been especially busy for China's honour guard.

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  Since December's start, Emmanuel Macron, Mark Carney,

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  Saquille Stammer and at least five other foreign leaders have trooped to Beijing.

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  This month, Friedrich Merz, Germany's Chancellor, will follow.

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  Most remarkable about this parade of leaders is not their quantity, but their identity.

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  China, a diplomatic omnivore, rolls out the red carpet for the head of any country,

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  no matter how big or small, rich or poor.

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  But six recent visitors from France, Canada, Britain,

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  Finland, South Korea and Germany share one crucial trait.

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