The China Puzzle for the world
China’s ambitions, China’s constraints, and how the world deals with it will determine the future of the world. China’s rise has been incredible. However, recent developments suggest that China is increasingly feeling hemmed in by Western powers. It continues to stake claim on Taiwan and has several disputes both in The South China Sea and with India along the long border. The world has been concerned about where this is going. However, there are recent developments that suggest that much of this may never actually happen. There are several reasons. China’s spectacular growth has moderated heavily during the last decade and is now showing signs of considerable slowdown. It now looks increasingly unlikely that it will ever catch up with the United States. On the contrary, the heavily indebted country may now be entering a long period of slow growth facing the headwinds from the distortions introduced during the breakneck growth phase. The demographic cliff that China is facing adds