China eyes reshaping global order as US influence wanes

""The international order is under great strain," Chinese leader Xi Jinping told British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, calling for efforts to "build an equal and orderly multipolar world," as the two met in Beijing on January 29. The message is not new in China's diplomatic rhetoric, but it has grown more pronounced amid US disengagement from multilateral institutions. The US is notably abandoning many initiatives focusing on climate change, labor and migration areas President Donald Trump has characterized as "woke" initiatives."

"A recent international survey found that respondents across 21 countries, including 10 from the European Union, expect China's global influence to grow over the next decade, according to the European Council on Foreign Relations. "The power gap [between China and the US] was much clearer in the past but now it's getting closer and closer," said Claus Soong, an analyst at the Berlin-based Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS)."

The United States announced withdrawal from 66 multilateral organizations while China hosted leaders from Canada, Finland and Britain in January. Xi Jinping warned that the international order is under strain and urged building an equal and orderly multipolar world. The US is abandoning initiatives on climate change, labor and migration labeled "woke" by President Donald Trump. China remains a member of most multilateral organizations and is gaining broader recognition. A survey across 21 countries expects China's global influence to grow over the next decade, and analysts say the power gap with the US is narrowing. China pursues influence through initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative launched in 2013.

Read at www.dw.com