GOOD MORNING FROM LONDON
19 SEPTEMBER 2026. CHINA POST NO 639
CHINA AND THE FOREIGN MEDIA
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IN THIS ISSUE;-
#1 TRUMP TURNS HIS BACK ON SOUTH KOREA
#2 THE ECONOMIST AND CHINA’S FUTURE
#3 DEMOCRACIES DIP AS GOVERNANCE BECOMES THE ISSUE
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#1 TRUMP DRAWS BACK FROM SOUTH KOREA
THE ECONOMIST
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#2 THE ECONOMIST AND CHINA
CHINA SHOCKS…
The Economist writes;-
“China shock 1.0 came with the manufacturing revolution that followed the country’s entry into the World Trade Organization.
China shock 2.0 was the cleantech wave of solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles.
China shock 3.0 has been the diffusion of Chinese digital technology, from ecommerce to recent AI models.
China shock 4.0, now on the horizon, will be quite different. It will be based not only on the export of Chinese technology but on China’s approach to innovation as a national project. “
GRAHAM PERRY COMMENTS;-
The Economist observes;-
“The momentum behind China shock 4.0 is strong. Geopolitical constraints are helping to crystallise a new and distinct model of technology governance. The next shock will not arrive in a container ship. It will spread via the principles that surround Chinese AI technologies. The world is not prepared for what will come next.”
This is a case of “China – Eyes Wide Open”. The Economist is opening its eyes. It is no friend of China but in recent months some of its prejudice against China has been replaced by analysis. For too long, especially in relation to China the West has allowed one-sidedness to obstruct progress. What is required today – as has been required throughout History – is that you know your opponent. Knowing does not necessarily mean liking. It means cool analytical dispassionate analysis. In a phrase – Objectivity not Subjectivity. “See it as it is and not how you want it to be.” The former allows you to reach informed conclusions. The latter leads you “up the garden path”. The stakes, today, are too high to allow prejudice to prevail.
The Economist is still critical of China – because the Economist upholds the One Man One Vote democratic system and rejects the Chinese authoritarian democratic model. But the Economist is not allowing wholehearted rejection of the Chinese model to stand in the way of increasingly perceptive analysis. And one last point – Governance is becoming the new distinction between China and Anti-China.
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#3 THE PEW INSTITUTE
The Pew Institute describes itself as follows
“Pew Research Center is made up of intellectually curious people from across many fields, places and backgrounds. For decades, our expertise, best-in-class methods and commitment to high-quality, fact-based research have made us a trusted resource for leaders and everyday people around the world.
Our mission
We generate a foundation of facts that enriches public dialogue and supports sound decision-making. We are nonprofit, nonpartisan and nonadvocacy. We value independence, objectivity, accuracy, rigor, humility, transparency and innovation”
According to Noel Trunbull – who writes in Pearls and Irritations – the Pew Institute has produced a Report that is relevant to an assessment of the United States and China.
The Report states;-
“Donald Trump has achieved something remarkable. According to a July Pew Research report, most of the 36 countries surveyed found that more people have a favourable view of China than the US.
The survey results were based on 42,151 respondents and the favourable views were especially large in several Asia-Pacific and Middle Eastern countries
Across 20 countries, views of China have turned more positive and views of the US more negative.
Perhaps the most astonishing finding was that of those surveyed, 56 per cent of respondents believed the US does not respect the personal freedoms of its people, compared with 58 per cent for China.
There have been dramatic drops in respondents saying the US respects personal freedoms in Singapore, Spain, the Netherlands, Greece, Sweden, Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, South Korea and Australia.
Pew also found that 17 per cent of middle-income countries tend to say the US interferes more in other countries and that China is a more reliable partner.
When asked which countries interfered in the affairs of other countries and which is a more reliable partner, 75 per cent said the US interfered compared with 45 per cent for China.
Fifty-two per cent think the US contributes not much or not at all to peace and stability around the world, compared with China’s 40 per cent
When asked whether, in taking international policy decisions, the countries took into account the interests of countries like their own, 51 per cent said the US did so not too much and not at all 42 per cent, while 57 per cent said a fair amount.
The countries where the US-China favourability gap has reversed in recent years include Canada, Spain, Indonesia, the UK, Australia, Sweden, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Argentina.”
GRAHAM PERRY COMMENTS;-
The needle is moving. The Pendulum is changing. China is on the move
There is a prejudice against the authoritarianism of China’s Communism. There is a preference for the democracy of Capitalism. But the balance is changing in favour of China because China is delivering for its people. Now larger numbers of people around the world are focusing on the following;-
- RAIL TRACK. United States rail track today is 220,044 kms (17.3%) China‘s is 165,000 (12.9%). The U.S. has stagnated since the 1880’s. China has surged since the 1980’s.
- STEMS PhDs. Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths PhDs. China awards significantly more STEM PhD graduates than the United States, a gap that widened after China first overtook the U.S. in 2007. “America’s weak domestic STEM talent pipeline represents perhaps its greatest national security vulnerability,” says Stephen Ezell, vice-president for global innovation policy at ITIF, a think-tank, noting the US was expected to face a deficit of 3.5 million Stem workers by 2025.
- The U.S. has 800+ military bases in foreign countries. China has just 1.
- China is predicted in 2030 to have 200 million citizens travelling to foreign destinations. The U.S. travel and tourism projection is 85.2 million.
Back to Basics. The West’s system of Government likes to focus on human rights, the rule of law, one man one vote and regular elections. Historically the Western system of Democracy has enabled the West to preach Freedom from a position of leadership. But the narrative is changing as Trump and Farage grab the headlines – ditto for France, Germany and Italy.
China is coming up fast – see train rails laid; airports built; Chinese travelling overseas; low levels of street crime; 800m lifted out of extreme poverty. To the West China is seen as totalitarian and oppressive. Is it?
But there is another point. China today looks better because the West today looks worse. The Guardian dated 19 September 2026 in its Spotlight Column reports;-
”Key indicators of democracy in the U.S. have fallen to their lowest levels in 50 years, with the global rule of law significantly undermined by the Trump administration’s “threats and actions”, data from a leading think tank shows.
The U.S. decline was particularly marked, but part of a global trend.
Around the world, judicial independence, credible elections and freedom of expression, press freedom and access to justice are all at their lowest levels for at least 30 years, according to a report by the Stockholm-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International Idea).”
The challenge in the future will be more on Governance than Democracy. Which Government delivers most for its people – not just for its wealthy few. How come 200 million Chinese will be free in 2030 to travel abroad to a holiday resort of their choice? What does this say about notions of freedom and the quality of life?
China is not a panacea. It is not a holiday camp for 1.4bn people. The average per capita income is only $13,700. Pockets of poverty remain and big challenges lie ahead. But its pace of change continues to challenge the West. That Challenge will dominate discussions of government and freedom for the rest of the 21st Century.
GRAHAM PERRY
