Is China winning the Global South?
US leaders say America needs to step up
China is "forging ties in the Global South," said The Washington Post, making inroads with countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America whose leaders increasingly seek an "alternative to Western hegemony" led by America and Europe. Beijing has increased its joint military drills with countries like Tanzania and Mozambique, and has sought to expand the U.N. Security Council to include the developing world. It's all part of China's attempt to achieve "greater legitimacy on the global stage."
Those efforts are boosting China's standing. "In a lot of the capitals around the world," Stanford University's Oriana Skylar Mastro told the Post, "they're now thinking first of Beijing, and then of Washington."
"This isn't about authoritarianism versus democracy," David P. Goldman said at The Asia Times. It's about commerce and influence. Beijing has "doubled exports to the Global South" since the beginning of the COVID pandemic, and those exports are going to democracies like India. The goal? "To make the world dependent on Chinese technology and supply chains."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What did the commentators say?
Chinese firms are expanding to the Global South "with startling speed," said The Economist. Those businesses are "building factories in countries from Malaysia to Morocco," and they're also pursuing the "5 billion consumers who live in the rest of the developing world." That growth offers "uncomfortable lessons" for the West, which has increasingly raised trade barriers to Chinese goods. China is now "reaping the rewards" of sticking with globalization. "As the West has turned inward, China and the rest of the emerging world have drawn closer."
"The Chinese charm offensive is working," Gabriele Manca said at The Diplomat, helped along by a combination of "economic influence, soft power, political pressure, and diplomatic initiatives." That work is also forward-thinking: By 2100, "eight out of 10 people will live in Asia or Africa." That shift in population will inevitably "reshape the global economic and political order." New York is the "quintessential city of the current era of globalization" that has been shaped by Western countries. Now China is offering a way forward to those "left out of today's globalization benefits."
What next?
There is a class element to all of this. A survey of 35 countries found that most residents of "middle-income countries" — like those found in the Global South — see China favorably, said Pew Research Center. (The favorable views were highest in Thailand, Kenya and Bangladesh.) In high-income countries, however, the vast majority of respondents see China unfavorably. Those views are more divided, though, in the Asia-Pacific where China has simmering territorial disputes with its neighbors.
American leaders acknowledge that China has "outpaced" the U.S. in the Global South, said The Washington Post. "We need to do more," Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The goal for U.S. officials is to make sure the planetary playing field doesn't go uncontested. "We want to help ensure that [countries in the Global South] have a choice," another State Department official said to The Atlantic Council in February, "and that they can make their decisions free from coercion."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Prop 6, inmate firefighters and the state of prison labor
The Explainer The long-standing controversial practice raises questions about exploitation
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: January 20, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sudoku medium: January 20, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
Will auto safety be diminished in Trump's second administration?
Today's Big Question The president-elect has reportedly considered scrapping a mandatory crash-reporting rule
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
US considering ban on Chinese drones as international tensions grow
In the Spotlight The decision will ultimately be made by the incoming Trump administration
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Will Jimmy Carter's one-term presidency be viewed more favorably after his death?
Today's Big Question Carter's time in the White House has always played second fiddle to his post-presidency accomplishments
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Is the US testing China's 'red lines' on Taiwan?
Today's Big Question And how will Trump change the U.S.-China relationship?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Will California's EV mandate survive Trump, SCOTUS challenge?
Today's Big Question The Golden State's climate goal faces big obstacles
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Why are lawmakers ringing the alarms about New Jersey's mysterious drones?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Unexplained lights in the night sky have residents of the Garden State on edge, and elected officials demanding answers
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Will Biden clear out death row before leaving office?
Today's Big Question Trump could oversee a 'wave of executions' otherwise
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
How will the rebels rule Syria?
Today's Big Question Fall of Assad regime is a 'historic opportunity' and a 'moment of huge peril' for country and region
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK Published