China set to become largest global economy in near future, pundit says

A political comentator has talked to PressTV about the future balance of power between the US and China. He says China is an economic superstar and has been performing spectacularly for the past four decades. Even following the coronavirus pandemic, China was among the first to bounce back but the United States is still struggling to recover from the aftermaths of the global calamity. 

Ashok Swain, who is a professor at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research of Uppsala University in Sweden, told PressTV on Friday that China isnset to surpass the US by 2028. 

"Although China was first to get into the crisis, it recovered fast and was the only major economy in the world to avoid a contraction in 2020. But the US economy is still struggling to cope with the pandemic despite a massive stimulus package of $1.9 trillion. Even if China has not surpassed the US in GDP terms, it is expected to do it by 2028. China has become world’s largest trading country, and its exports are more than imports which is not the case with the US," he said. 

"However, we also need to remember that China’s population is more than four times the US population, so China's per capita income is still much lower than in the US. For China to reach that level will take much longer. Overall, it is easy to say that China’s economic influence has been massive, and in many parts of the world, it has pushed the US behind."

"There is no doubt that China is rising economically, militarily, and politically. In GDP terms, it will displace the US and become the world’s largest economy in a few years. China is still behind but on the way to surpassing the US in military power with increased spending on weapons technology and developing several secretive weapons.

"China’s political influence has increased manifold due to its growing economy and particularly with the Belt and Road Initiative's help, and it is a permanent member of the Security Council. Russia is now politically stable, doing well with arms industries, but economically it is stagnant to pursue and sustain its great power ambition," Swain added. 

The analyst referred to the increasing cooperation between Beijing and Moscow as one of the challenges that Washington faces. 

"However, the coalition of some sort between China and Russia in global power politics has become quite forceful and seriously problematic for the US and its European and Pacific partners. At the same time, it is important to remember that the US as a global power will continue to have more political and cultural influence even if it is struggling to cope with China's competition economically and militarily."

"China helps developing countries to build their infrastructure and assists other core sectors such as agriculture, water, health, and education. China’s economic rise has facilitated growth and development opportunities for developing countries through increased trade and infrastructural capacity. China’s lending, investment, and official development assistance are explicitly non-prescriptive and come with ‘no strings attached. 

"Superpower China now provides an alternative to developing countries and regional powers to bargain well in this world economy's competitive landscape. If they can play good politics and smart diplomacy, they can manage to get the best possible economic benefit for their countries and people. The leaders of these countries have a choice now, and they need to make use of it," Swain concluded. 

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