Op-ed: China has a big but brief chance right now to speed its way to global leadership

With the world distracted by Covid-19, watch China’s expected release later this year of “Chinese Standards 2035.”  Beijing’s intention is nothing short of setting the global norms for emerging technologies over decades to come.

“China Standards 2035 is to focus on setting standards in emerging industries,” write Emily de La Bruyere and Nathan Picarsic in TechCrunch. “High-end manufacturing, unmanned vehicles, additive manufacturing, new materials, the industrial internet, cyber security, new energy, the ecological industry. … Having secured its foothold in targeted physical spheres, Beijing is ready to set their rules.”

What this approach underscores is how China’s approach to global leadership differs from that of the United States. While Washington typically tries to lead others from atop the international community, China’s aspiration is to “move closer to the center of the world stage,” in the words of President Xi.

What’s been most evident in recent weeks is that China is acting to shape the Covid-19 period and its aftermath with considerable focus and planning.  At the same time, the U.S. response to China has been inconsistent, lacking in long-term strategy and close coordination with allies.

A future column will deal with what democratic countries could do to confront this challenge together. The first step, however, is to understand China’s recognition of this historic opportunity and what it is doing to seize the moment.

Frederick Kempe is a best-selling author, prize-winning journalist and president CEO of the Atlantic Council, one of the United States’ most influential think tanks on global affairs. He worked at The Wall Street Journal for more than 25 years as a foreign correspondent, assistant managing editor and as the longest-serving editor of the paper’s European edition. His latest book – “Berlin 1961: Kennedy, Khrushchev, and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth” – was a New York Times best-seller and has been published in more than a dozen languages. Follow him on Twitter @FredKempe and subscribe here to Inflection Points, his look each Saturday at the past week’s top stories and trends.

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Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/02/op-ed-china-has-a-big-chance-to-speed-its-way-to-global-leadership.html