Being the world’s superpower, a country ought to have a good economy, strong military capability, high per capita growth, science and technologies, and influence in the global community. One of the things that had aided China’s phenomenal economic growth is international trade and foreign direct investment (Sigurdson 37). These two policies helped China in gaining international financial earnings such as the dollar, which helps in making the country independent. In addition, China is known for undervaluing its currency in order to export more of their goods and services to the international market (Gifford 87). This shows that the China has had a booming economic market due to various policies implemented by the Chinese government. This paper seeks to examine the possibility of China being the next world Superpower by looking at their fast growing economy and its military capability. In addition, the paper will discuss why China cannot become a superpower in terms of the military capability relative to that of the US.
China has established economic reforms, which have aided the country to progress economically. China’s economic growth has been rising for the past two decades with an average of 9.6% Gross Domestic Product (Sigurdson 42). China’s industrial boom has brought about the high economic growth and in turn improved standards of living in the country. Industrialization of China has favored the country in terms of being ranked at the top for exports and imports. This means that China’s products have become favorable in the international market because China’s goods tend to be cheaper than other developed countries (Sigurdson 52). China yen has favored the country in terms of trade because China’s currency is considered weak relative to the dollar thereby, making their goods cheaper and more favorable in the international market Gifford 76). China’s high population has also impacted the country’s GDP because there is availability of labor in the country. Chinese have played a key role in role in supporting the industrial growth through labor productivity.
Foreign direct investment has also contributed to China’s economic boom. This form of investment has contributed to government revenue, created job opportunities, transfer of technology, and opened up China to the global market (Sigurdson 73). China’s government offers financial incentives to foreign investors where they enjoy tax advantages. This form of incentive has attracted many investors into the country (Gifford 78). Foreign direct investors also price autonomy as granted by the Chinese government. In addition, China enjoys having a large foreign currency reserve, which they have used to lend money to respective states such as the US (Gifford 81). This shows a form of economic supremacy making China a favorable candidate to being the world’s superpower.
Given the rising economic growth of China, the country is strengthening its military capability. It is important to know that China has started to train its military troops on different missions (Fishman 105). This is important to China because the country’s troops have not engaged in foreign warfare. Thus, the country is focusing on professional training of its land forces troops. The country has also injected a lot of funds to develop it technological know-how on developing air naval systems (Fishman 107). This means that the country is training to be proficient in their military through not only acquiring physical training but also having enough technology to deploy naval and air systems effectively in case of war. China has also developed nuclear capability as an asset to strengthening its military capability (Sigurdson 97). This shows that China is striving to equip its military with modern technology so that in the long run it can be strong deterrence relative to the US.
China’s military reforms came about in the 1980s especially during the Gulf War. Chinese government realized that having manpower does not equate to having a strong military capability (Gifford 109). Instead, modern technology and warfare equate to a country’s military strength. PLA (People’s Liberation Army) is among the largest armies in the world but this does not mean that China has a strong militant capability relative to that of the US (Gifford 114). The US attacked Iraq through its technological capability as it dispensed missiles and bombed through their advanced satellites. In addition, the US submerged the Iraqi forces due to better coordination between the naval forces and ground troops (Fishman 67). Thus, China’s new defense strategy is to use modern arms and advance their electronic warfare.
China as a country believes that strong air and naval power are one of the strategies to improving its deterrence level against other nation states. In history, China believed that military manpower exhibits the strength of military capability (Gifford 129). This is not the case anymore. Improved machine power in terms of naval and air capability is more effective compared to using manpower in the military (Sigurdson 117). Thus, China is striving to make this transformation in its militant system. Though China has a long way to go in terms of changing its military strategy, it has enough finances to support new technology that will support modern ammunition such as ground and air missiles (Fishman 98). It is important to note that this military transformation may take decades for the Chinese government. So far, the US is still technologically advanced in terms of their military strategies compared to that of China. China has to first engage into foreign deployments as a way of creating an image for themselves just like the US deploys its army around the globe as their boast with their advanced and experienced military (Fishman 102). This shows that though China may be an economic hegemon, it has a long way to go in terms of improving its militant capability among other nations.
In conclusion, it is clear that China has a strong growing economy in that its GDP is at 9.2%. This form of economic growth has been sustained due to foreign direct investments in the country as well as available source of labor, which is as a result of high population in China. The Chinese government has created financial incentives to attract many foreign direct investments in the country, which provide jobs and contributes to the government revenue. In addition, the weak China currency has contributed to its rising exports and imports of goods. The weak Chinese currency relative to the dollar has made its goods cheap to the global market. Another factor that the boosts Chinese growth is the fact that the country enjoys a large foreign currency reserves such that the US borrows money from China. In a way, this makes China an economic giant. Though the Chinese government is injecting money to develop its military capability, it is important to know that it may take time. The gulf war served as an eye-opener to the Chinese government as it learned that modern technology in terms of weaponry was more important that having a large army. Also, China has to engage its trained military in global deployment as a way of creating a positive image in their military strength.
Works Cited
Fishman, Ted C.. China, Inc.: how the rise of the next superpower challenges America and the world. New York: Scribner, 2005. Print.
Gifford, Rob. China road: a journey into the future of a rising power. New York: Random House, 2007. Print.
Sigurdson, Jon, and Jiang Jiang. Technological superpower China. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Pub., 2005. Print.
