Xi Jinping looks abroad for confidence
The West’s wobbles have China feeling vindicated
When Xi Jinping looks out at the world, he seems to see history’s arc bending his way. As war in Ukraine slides towards a frozen stalemate, and intensifying horrors stalk the Middle East, Communist Party leaders sound confident that they know how to solve such crises, and that most of the world agrees with them. China puts its trust in interests coldly weighed and balanced, and in economic development. It declines to judge even the most blood-soaked tyrants and denies that universal values exist, calling them a ploy to stigmatise non-Western civilisations.
Explore more
This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Xi Jinping seeks confidence abroad”
From the January 27th 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from China
An outrage that even China’s supine media has called out
Anger is growing over a form of detention linked to torture and deaths
Why foreign law firms are leaving China
A number of them are in motion to vacate
An initiative so feared that China has stopped saying its name
“Made in China 2025” has been a success, but at what cost?
A pay rise for government workers sparks anger and envy in China
The effort to improve morale has not had the intended effect
A big earthquake causes destruction in Tibet
Dozens are dead, thousands of buildings have been destroyed
Militant Uyghurs in Syria threaten the Chinese government
How much does China have to fear?