Who is dominating the world

Meng returned to a tumultuous welcome in China. Official media used her to fan nationalistic flames, saying that the Communist Party and government looked after Chinese citizens who were bullied overseas. Widely regarded as hostages, they were released as soon as Meng was homeward bound. Instead, they are implying a prisoner swap, pointing out that the Meng case was discussed by the Chinese and American presidents in their phone conversation on Sept. By doing so, China undermines the American-Canadian position that they were operating under legal procedures.

This failure of Chinese soft power may well have pushed Beijing to focus on national power where the West is concerned. Frank Ching is a U. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.

Indonesia will rank in fourth place, with 3. Although, not on the top eight, the United Kingdom has occupied the ninth ranking, but is expected to drop to 13 by due to the Brexit crisis.

Among the 20 countries that will drive the global economy in five years that are not included in the list are Mexico, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, the Philippines, France, Thailand, Malaysia, and Bangladesh. According to Bloomberg , Spain, Poland, Canada, and Vietnam are expected to reduce their output and no longer be among the countries with the strongest economic growth in the world. The Middle Eastern country is expected to contribute 1. It is one of the smaller countries that will be driving global growth in the next five years.

These three countries will each have a share of 1. Germany's GDP, in particular, is only expected to rise by 0. Brazil overtook Germany and Japan to be ranked in 6th place.

Its economy is the ninth-largest in the world, and mainly relies on primary products for export. Indonesia will remain in the fourth spot even though its economy is expected to drop from 3.

Despite the Trump administration's trade war with China, the US economy is growing faster than expected, according to the Guardian. But, business investment has fallen again, with companies cutting back on new equipment.

India will leapfrog Germany and the United States to claim the number three spot in global rankings in Its economic growth is expected to be at 5. China's economy has been growing at a slower pace thanks to the US-led trade war as well as softer domestic demand. When it comes to global governance, still other examinations show, Beijing wants a system in which international institutions buttress rather than batter repressive regimes.

One hardly has to read between the lines to understand that this agenda will require fundamentally resetting the current geopolitical balance. As with so many aspects of the U. During the s, some leading American Sovietologists insisted that Moscow was becoming a satisfied, status quo power. Yet that claim required ignoring what Soviet leaders said about detente and peaceful coexistence — that it was a way of ensuring the triumph of socialism without war — as well as their efforts to build military superiority and positions of strength in the Third World.

The warning signs were evident then, as they are today. Beijing may not even have decided which of its two paths to global influence is preferable: Establishing dominance in the Western Pacific and then expanding outward from there, or outflanking the U.

Finally, China may ultimately fail to accomplish any of this. Perhaps the coronavirus will so weaken the U. Or perhaps China will run into so many internal problems, and so much external resistance, that its drive will stall.