Starptautiskā bestsellera Kad Ķīna valdīs pār pasauli autors Mārtins Žaks sarunā ar Sestdienu stāsta, ko varam gaidīt no Āzijas lielvaras

Gadsimtiem ilgi bijām pieraduši, ka pasaules kartē Eiropa ir pašā centrā, bet lielā Ķīna iekārtojusies nomalē. Taču tuvāko gadu desmitu laikā šī kārtība varētu mainīties, jo Ķīna arvien aktīvāk piesakās uz XXI gadsimta pasaules centra lomu. Tas varētu sagādāt grūtus brīžus amerikāņiem, kas joprojām lepojas ar pasaules ietekmīgākās valsts statusu. Nav šaubu, ka smaguma centra pārbīde ietekmēs arī citas valstis: tagad Latvijas politiķi piestaigā uz konsultācijām ASV vēstniecībā, taču nākotnē, iespējams, nāksies iestaigāt taciņu uz Ķīnas vēstniecību.

Viens no jaunās pasaules kārtības vēstnešiem ir britu žurnālists Mārtins Žaks, kurš padziļināti pētījis Āzijas izaugsmi. Žaka grāmata Kad Ķīna valdīs pār pasauli kļuvusi par starptautisku bestselleru; uz to atsaucas daudzi Ķīnas pētnieki, jo Žaka darbs tiek uzskatīts par vienu no labākajiem šajā žanrā. Tagad šī grāmata ar Lattelecom atbalstu izdota arī latviešu valodā. Mārtins Žaks nesen bija ieradies Rīgā, un Sestdiena tikās ar viņu, lai noskaidrotu, kāda īsti būs Ķīnas pārvaldītā pasaule.

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Speech, “The Rise of the East – a New World Order and Consequences for the West”, organised by the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) and the Refleks program of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre

…together with panel discussion with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Latvia, Mr. Valdis Dombrovskis

The aftermath of China’s fatal high-speed rail crash in July was a reminder that the foundations of the country’s remarkable economic growth are perhaps not as solid as some may suggest.

With the outpouring of anger and grief came a series of accusations over what was to blame for the crash, corruption, cheap equipment and botched reverse-engineering among them. It was barely the best advert for a new rail network that was supposed to be yet another signal of China’s arrival as a modern global superpower.

Of course the West still looks on at China with envy; its growth rate remains at a level most can only dream of. China has revelled in the role of the white knight riding to the rescue of the global economy, buying up US and European debt and even lecturing the US on fiscal responsibility.

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Those following the events in China are intrigued by an important question: What will be its likely future course once it achieves a high level of economic development?

Someone analysing China based on what is happening in the wider world may come to the conclusion that it will follow the Western model and become a multi-party democracy. Whereas those analysing China based on its history and culture may come to the conclusion that it will not follow the Western model even after it achieves a high level of economic development.
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In A Contest for Supremacy: China, America, and the Struggle for Mastery in Asia (Norton, $27.95), Aaron L. Friedberg ’78, Ph.D. ’86, dissects the present and future of Sino-American relations, stating that “despite several reasons a closer relationship between the two economic powers is possible, two main factors—a growing clash of interests and deep ideological and political differences—will prove more decisive and will make the relationship more tense and competitive,” according to a review by the New York Times Book Review.

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