Module VIII·Article II·~2 min read
The Rise of China and the Transformation of the Global Order
The Global World: Challenges of the 21st Century
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The Greatest Economic Growth in History
From 1978 to 2020, China grew its economy from the level of the poorest countries in the world to the second-largest economy on the planet. In 40 years, 800 million people rose out of absolute poverty—this is half of the total reduction of poverty globally over that period. The scale has no historical precedent.
Model: “authoritarian capitalism”—a market economy with state planning and without political democracy. This challenges the liberal thesis that a market economy inevitably produces democracy. China empirically disproves this—for now.
The “Beijing Consensus” as an alternative to the “Washington Consensus”: the state maintains control over strategic sectors, gradual liberalization only where it is advantageous, an authoritarian political system as a guarantee of stability. This model is attractive to many authoritarian governments.
The Belt and Road Initiative
Since 2013, China has been investing in infrastructure in 140+ countries (ports, railways, pipelines, digital networks). The announced investment volume is $1 trillion. Critics call this “debt-trap diplomacy”: countries take Chinese loans on Chinese terms for Chinese projects, and then risk losing sovereign control over infrastructure.
Reality is more complicated: there are cases of debt restructuring (not confiscation). China provides infrastructure where the West hasn’t. But geopolitical motives are obvious: creating dependencies, access to resources, alternative financial structures.
The Technological Race of the 21st Century
AI, quantum computing, 5G, biotechnology—the main technological fields of the new century. The US and China are in fierce competition. Huawei and 5G: the US and its allies are excluding Huawei from telecommunications networks, fearing espionage. Semiconductors: the US restricts the export of advanced chips to China. This is a “technological iron curtain”—a new type of confrontation.
For the rest of the world: a binary choice (“which side are you on—US or China?”) is becoming real. Small states and businesses find themselves caught between two systems that demand loyalty.
Question for reflection: China’s rise occurs under an authoritarian political system. What does this say about the relationship between political system and economic success? Will this relationship change in the long term?
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