Michael Schuman
At the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation starting September 4, Beijing will once again seek to deepen its engagement with countries in the Global South. Chinese leader Xi Jinping was, to his credit, prescient in recognizing the frustrations and aspirations within the developing world and has capitalized on those sentiments to build China’s global political and economic influence. The three-day event, which the Chinese foreign ministry called “the largest diplomatic event China has hosted in recent years,” is only one of a series of programs, initiatives, and gatherings that Beijing has launched to tighten its bonds of diplomacy, business, and trade with countries throughout the Global South.
Yet over the past two years, Xi’s approach to the developing world has undergone a significant change: It has become increasingly consumed by Beijing’s geopolitical competition with the United States and its allies and partners. This shift will have major consequences for Beijing’s relations with the Global South, China’s role in the international order, and the future course of its global power.
The aim of Xi’s strategy is to build a coalition of states within the Global South to act as a counterweight to the US global alliance system and a base upon which to promote China’s political, economic, and ideological interests. Xi wants to undermine the US-led rules-based international order by creating a Chinese-led alternative order based on illiberal political principles that can roll back US influence and shape global governance through international institutions and forums.
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