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As I see it | Don’t get overconfident, China: rumours of US decline may be greatly exaggerated
- China has been pointing out an American downturn long before the chaotic withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan sparked global discussions on the subject
- While this may be understandable among keyboard warriors, it should never find its way into Beijing’s official doctrine, lest there be crucial miscalculations
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Way before the chaos in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of US troops prompted global discussions of American decline, the Chinese had already reached that conclusion.
When Covid-19 engulfed the United States last year, Chinese media and commentators pointed to the high death toll and claimed that American incompetence in taming the raging pandemic was a clear sign of the country’s downturn.
State media outlets described the US as a diminishing and hostile power, with the People’s Daily calling America’s deterioration a matter of time.
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The Global Times said combined with America’s other problems such as “racial discrimination, social division and confrontation between political parties”, the pandemic had highlighted the “stagnation and further decline” of the US.
As further proof, Chinese netizens pointed to what they described as crumbling US infrastructure and its inability to catch up with China’s 5G capabilities.
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He Yiting, executive vice-president of the Communist Party of China’s Party School, last December cited the US’ lack of developmental vitality, the hollowing out of its industries, ageing population, and widening income gap.
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