08.02.2013 Views

The United States and China in Power Transition - Strategic Studies ...

The United States and China in Power Transition - Strategic Studies ...

The United States and China in Power Transition - Strategic Studies ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

dissatisfied second-ranked power. It is not a U.S. ally<br />

<strong>and</strong> played no part <strong>in</strong> the establishment of the current<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational order. <strong>The</strong> <strong>United</strong> <strong>States</strong> did not even<br />

recognize the Beij<strong>in</strong>g government when it was established<br />

<strong>in</strong> 1949, <strong>and</strong> for 30 years after that kept <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong><br />

out of the U.S.-led <strong>in</strong>ternational community. <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong>,<br />

for its part, once denounced the U.S.-led <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

order <strong>and</strong> pushed for its destruction. <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong> is now<br />

experienc<strong>in</strong>g rapid economic development. Given<br />

the favorable conditions created through economic<br />

reform <strong>and</strong> the Ch<strong>in</strong>ese government’s well-planned<br />

strategy to cont<strong>in</strong>ue <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong>’s modernization, Robert<br />

Fogel, a Nobel laureate <strong>in</strong> economics, predicts that by<br />

2040, the “Ch<strong>in</strong>ese economy will reach $123 trillion, or<br />

nearly three times the economic output of the entire<br />

globe <strong>in</strong> 2000. . . . <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong>’s share of global GDP [gross<br />

domestic product]—40 percent—will dwarf that of the<br />

<strong>United</strong> <strong>States</strong> (14 percent) <strong>and</strong> the European Union (5<br />

percent) 30 years from now.” 26 In addition, the impact<br />

of <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong>’s economic growth <strong>and</strong> expansion on the<br />

<strong>in</strong>ternational system is already discernable. F<strong>in</strong>ally,<br />

<strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong> believes that it has political, economic, <strong>and</strong> cultural<br />

alternatives to offer the world. Ch<strong>in</strong>ese leaders<br />

have always had views <strong>and</strong> concerns for the world (天<br />

下观). Assum<strong>in</strong>g the position of world leadership will<br />

be natural when the time comes. <strong>The</strong> question now is<br />

not whether <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong> is a contender <strong>in</strong> this power transition,<br />

but how <strong>Ch<strong>in</strong>a</strong> manages its rise <strong>and</strong> the power<br />

transition with the <strong>United</strong> <strong>States</strong>.<br />

24

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!