Xi Jinping

Freeman Tells Xinhua: Xi-Trump Summit Should Focus on Economic Cooperation

Lawrence , , , , , , , ,
An aerial drone photo shows U.S. carmaker Tesla’s Megafactory in Shanghai, east China, Feb. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

Below is from an interview with Xinhua regarding Xi-Trump May 14-15 summit in Beijing.

Source: Xinhua, Editor: huaxia, 2026-05-28

Interview: China, U.S. have shared interests for cooperation, says U.S. economist

U.S. economist says stronger trade, infrastructure and manufacturing ties would benefit both countries and support global stability. Xinhua reports on interview with Freeman

by Xinhua writer Liu Yanan

NEW YORK, May 28 (Xinhua) — China and the United States can have economic cooperation and collaboration on multiple fronts, and there is no objective reason for antagonisms to exist between the two countries, a U.S. economist has said.

As the world’s two largest economies, both nations can benefit from increased trade and the exchange of ideas, said Lawrence Freeman, a U.S.-based physical economist, in a recent interview with Xinhua.

“If the United States partners with China, which there is no reason not to, the rest of the world will react positively,” Freeman told Xinhua.

He noted that China’s Belt and Road Initiative has been a vital source to African and other nations in providing vital infrastructure.

The world needs physical, not monetary, economic growth to end poverty and hunger, which are the primary causes of instability, the economist said.

Stability and peace can be achieved by improving the living conditions of all nations and all people, he added.

Freeman also spoke highly of China’s “win-win” approach to foreign policy and criticized the harmful “zero-sum game” approach.

“Each nation benefits from the growth and development of other nations. The more nations that are industrialized, the more their economies will require capital goods produced in other nations,” he said.

China’s prowess in manufacturing could also serve cooperation between the two nations, Freeman said.

“China has become a model of how to achieve manufacturing and industrial growth, which should be emulated by the United States instead of being maligned,” he added.■

Excerpts from Freeman’s response:

China’s “win-win” approach to foreign policy is far superior to the diseased “zero-sum game” approach. The world is not fixed; it is not governed by survival of the strongest. Our planet, our universe, is constantly growing and expanding, propelled by human creativity. Each nation benefits from the growth and development of other nations. The more nations that are industrialized the more their economies will require capital goods produced in other nations. Stability and peace can be achieved by improving the living conditions of all nations and all people. nations should understand and adopt what was stipulated at the 1648 Treaty of Westphalia: the benefit to the other is a benefit to thyself.

China is the leading manufacturing nation in the world. Only the combined manufacturing output of the U.S. and Europe is more than China. This speaks volumes about China’s approach to building up their economy over the last forty-five years. Massive investments by China, in categories of hard infrastructure; energy and rail transportation in particular, have been indispensable to its growth.

The U.S. has lost almost five million manufacturing jobs in this century, over 100,000 since President Trump took office in January 2025. Foolish leaders of the U.S. did this to America, not China. The U.S. destroyed its own economy by shrinking its manufacturing sector and failing to invest in infrastructure. A robust manufacturing sector is essential for the prosperity of a nation. China has become a model of how to achieve manufacturing and industrial growth, which should be emulated by the U.S. instead of being maligned. It is also a model for the rest of the world in how to achieve manufacturing superiority in approximately two generations.

People who talk about “de-coupling” the U.S. from China are dangerous fools, who understand nothing about physical economics. Despite the bravado of some, the U.S. would never survive this severing, but China would. China dominates supply chains of refined critical and rare earth minerals. China understood the need to develop these resources decades before the U.S. It cannot be reversed by the U.S. simply ordering China or other nations to acquiesce, or by U.S. bullying other nations by threatening them with abusive tariffs.

China has succeeded because it understood that to develop its economy and provide for its people, it needed: a strong manufacturing sector; extensive infrastructure; a commitment to scientific research, particularly space exploration; and discovering new valuable natural resources. This “full-set economy” approach is not unique and can be replicated by other nations. The U.S. once understood this and can again.

Below, are earlier posts on this topic.

Can U.S. Compete With China? Washington Establishment Has Serious Qualms

U.S. Establishment Admits Truth Of China’s Economic Superiority, But They Don’t Understand It

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for 35 years. He is a teacher, writer, public speaker, consultant on Africa, and an analyst of global strategic relations. Mr. Freeman strongly believes that economic development is an essential human right. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com, also publishes on: lawrencefreeman.substack.com, “Freeman’s Africa and the World, and on X @lkfreemansafrica

Xi-Trump Summit Offers Needed Stability In A Perilous World

Lawrence , , , , , ,

On May 15, China’s People’s Daily published edited excerpts from an interview with Lawrence Freeman, prior to the May 14-15 summit, between Presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump. Read: People’s Daily Interview with Freeman

Below is the English translation.

Strengthening dialogue and cooperation between the US and China will better enable them to jointly address global challenges (International Forum) Cooperation between the United States and China will inject strong momentum into global stability, development, and prosperity, making the world a better place.

On May 14, Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with US President Donald Trump at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, who was on a state visit to China. The meeting between the two heads of state is crucial for both countries and the world. As the world’s two largest economies, the decisions made by the US and China, and their future policy directions, will have a significant impact on the world. This meeting set the tone and direction for the development of US-China relations and is a key opportunity to promote the sound development of US-China relations, making it of great significance. Maintaining dialogue and communication between the United States and China helps enhance mutual trust, manage differences, expand consensus, and promote cooperation.

As important trading partners, the US and China each possess strong complementary advantages in areas such as natural resources, markets, capital, and technology, offering vast opportunities for cooperation. Those advocating for “decoupling and supply chain disruptions” clearly lack rational consideration. Against the backdrop of rising uncertainty in the current international environment, maintaining stable, healthy, and sustainable development of US-China economic and trade relations is conducive to maintaining the stability of global industrial and supply chains, boosting market confidence, and is in the common interest of both peoples. It will also inject more stability and certainty into the world economy.

There are no winners in tariff wars and trade wars. The US should abandon zero-sum thinking, fully recognize the enormous potential of US-China cooperation, establish a win-win cooperation concept, and contribute to improving people’s livelihoods and promoting common development worldwide. In fact, the American people hold a friendly yearning for China and eagerly anticipate visiting and exchanging ideas with it. Two years ago, I visited Beijing and stayed for nine days, personally experiencing the sincerity, enthusiasm, and friendliness of the Chinese people, and also feeling their sincere expectation for friendly exchanges between the American and Chinese people. Recently, a friend of mine traveled to China and had a very pleasant experience, deeply appreciating the warm hospitality of the Chinese people. Because of this wonderful experience in China, my family and I plan to travel there again this summer.

This meeting between the US and Chinese heads of state will inject vitality into promoting friendly exchanges between the two peoples, enhance the American people’s understanding of China, and encourage them to truly get closer to this fascinating country and witness firsthand the vibrant picture of ancient civilization and modern development complementing each other. Looking at the international situation and the development of bilateral relations, there is no reason for the US and China to move towards confrontation. Cooperation between the two countries benefits both, while confrontation harms both. The two countries can absolutely achieve mutual success and common prosperity. Working together, the US and China will inject strong momentum into global stability, development, and prosperity, making the world a better place. We look forward to both countries jointly maintaining a stable, healthy, and sustainable bilateral relationship, jointly addressing global challenges, jointly committing to reducing hunger and poverty, helping underdeveloped countries achieve industrialization, promoting sustainable global economic growth, and safeguarding world peace and prosperity.

On Sunday, May 17, People’s Daily published additional remarks from Lawrence Freeman. Under the title:

Promoting the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of China-US relations

　　”The meeting between the US and Chinese leaders is of great significance to both countries and the world. The mutual respect and friendly attitude shown by the two leaders have laid a solid foundation for strengthening cooperation in areas such as trade, science and technology, culture, and maintaining international and regional stability. We look forward to this meeting opening a new chapter in US-China relations and promoting the long-term stable development of bilateral relations,” said Lawrence Freeman, an international affairs expert in the United States.

Read below, my earlier posts on this topic.

China & BRICS Choose Progress Over West’s Deindustrialization

Franklin Roosevelt Intended to Industrialize the ‘Global South’: The Case of Ethiopia

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 35 years. He is a teacher, writer, public speaker, consultant on Africa, and an analyst of global strategic relations. Mr. Freeman strongly believes that economic development is an essential human right. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com, also publishes on: lawrencefreeman.substack.com, “Freeman’s Africa and the World, and on X @lkfreemansafrica

Chinese Pres Xi is Correct: Rules-Based Order Is In Decay, But We Once Looked to the Stars

Lawrence , , , , , , , ,

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who is on an official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, April 14, 2026. (China Daily)

May 11, 2026

President Xi Jinping is widely reported to have told Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez that the international order is crumbling into disarray, during their meeting last month in Beijing. Both leaders have condemned President Trump’s unprovoked war against the nation of Iran and rejected the desperate pleas by President Trump for support of his reckless military actions. Their discussion on April 14, at the Great Hall of the People, acknowledged the conditions of the world are fraught with danger, and pledged increased cooperation between the two nations. Keep in mind that President Trump was to meet President Xi for a summit on March 31, before he postponed it due to his self-imposed quagmire in Iran. That summit has been rescheduled for May 14-15, which appears will occur.

President Xi’s  description of the crumbling and disarray of the Western orchestrated rules-based international order goes beyond previous statements by the Chinese President, regarding the failure of Western policies. The Chinese translation of this phrase reveals that President Xi’s remarks were more perceptive and discerning than one might think. The literal translation is an idiom: the rites have crumbled and the music is ruined, which conveys moral decay.

This astute observation is absolutely correct. The decadence of the West, with its moral, cultural, and economic rot is there for all to witness, if they desire. One has to look no further than the contorted responses by western leaders for their involvement with the morally depraved Jeffrey Epstein. Or what passes for political (un)thinking in the United States. It is absolutely clear to any astute and honest thinker that survival of humanity requires an escape from the rules-based morally decayed order to a more advanced set of principles (not rules) guiding relations among nations.

China will undoubtedly be a leading nation in creating a new paradigm. U.S. officials and poorly informed Americans have little to no understanding of China’s history, culture, or the thinking propelling their unparalleled economic growth over the last forty-five years. The U.S. government and its citizens have been conditioned to think of “politics” in terms of what provides immediate gratification in the seconds, hours, or days ahead. By contrast, the Chinese think of what policies today, will result in benefits to society, decades, and centuries into the future. For example, President Trump is obsessed in securing supply chains for critical and rare earth minerals, with China controlling the refinement of 90% of these resources. Should China be accused of nefariously controlling these precious resources needed for computer chips, AI, and military munitions, because they understood their importance a generation before the West? Should we discriminate against China because they are smarter than us?

Society’s culture should emphasize nurturing a child’s creative potential to discover the laws of the universe. (Courtesy of communityplaythings.com)

The clearest evidence for the indictment of the crumbling and disarray of the Western orchestrated rules-based order is their lack of vision for the future of humanity. Their gross failure to recognize that human creativity, the uniquely human creative imagination, is the single most powerful resource in our universe. Not money, not power, not military might, not the glitz and glitter of opulent wealth: but the human mind housed inside the human body. A nation should not be governed on a “business model.” It should be led by a statesman, who is guided by a vision for the advancement of humankind.

Thus, the physical development of human beings and the nurturing of their creative powers should become the principle of a new paradigm replacing the morally and culturally doomed rules-based order.

The U.S. Economy Is Bankrupt

The U.S. federal debt has surpassed 100% of GDP, marking a significant fiscal milestone. As of March 31, the debt reached $31.265 trillion, slightly exceeding the GDP of $31.216 trillion. It is now official, the U.S. owes more in federal debt than our GDP, which itself is terribly flawed, because it does not accurately measure the real physical wealth of an economy. We should also acknowledge that total U.S. federal and private debt exceeds $100 trillion, once we include consumer credit debt, mortgage debt, school debt, state debt, and corporate debt. And all of this debt exists within a financial system loaded with two quadrillion dollars of speculative derivatives.

The U.S. economy exists on increasing amounts of debt that will never, ever be repaid. Without this almost tenfold increase of debt during the last quarter of a century, the U.S. economy would not exist in its present state. It would not be able to pursue its goal of dictating policy to the rest of the world as the super hegemon. The U.S. economy exists on a mountains of debt at the expense of an increasing number of Americans struggling to survive.

While all categories of U.S. debt have been growing exponentially, the goods producing sector, i.e., productive component of the U.S. economy, has been shrinking since the end of World War II. Simultaneously, employment has increased in the service sector, which employs five times as many workers. This trajectory, which has existed for generations is destroying the U.S. economy and is one of the primary causes of economic suffering by the vast majority of Americans. Service sector jobs do not produce wealth, they consume wealth

Manufacturing jobs are the most essential category of employment for every economy. The manufacturing sector, which produces the physical wealth of the economy, is the pillar that sustains real economic growth and provides for the material standard of living of citizens. Not only has the U.S. employment in the manufacturing sector collapsed precipitously in this century, from 17.32 million in 2,000 to 12.69 million today, but in the last 16 months, the U.S. has lost upwards of an additional 100,000 manufacturing jobs.

For 100 years, the US led the world in manufacturing. Then, in 2010, China surpassed the U.S. And the lead has kept increasing.

The most resounding indictment confirming the crumbling and disarray of the rules-based order is the failure of the U.S. to continue the cultural and economically uplifting determination to explore space, led by President John Kennedy. While I am happy to see the success of the Artemis 2 mission in April 2026, the last moon landing mission was Apollo 17 in 1972. That was over a half-century ago, and astronauts may not land again on the moon for several more years. During this same period, U.S. culture has suffered greatly, absent a true leader over the last fifty-four years, who would lift the minds of the population upwards towards the stars.

The proposed White House budget for NASA in 2026 represents a 24% cut. This would be the lowest amount of money for NASA since 1961, when President launched his “Man on the Moon” program.

Humankind was created to colonize space, and in the process master the laws of the universe. A robust space program emphasizes the importance of nurturing human creativity, by focusing the minds of our citizens on the discovery of new physical principles, which govern the universe. Our young adults and children have been denied the excitement of watching human beings land on an object in space, 250,000 miles from earth.

The collapse of our space program from over 4% of the U.S. budget to approximately .5%, is criminal, and beyond economic stupidity. It demonstrates the utter lack of any understanding of physical economics. Investments in space explorations upgrade scientific research, and lead to new technologies and materials that propel an economy forward. It is estimated that there was a fourteen cent returned to the economy for every one cent spent on Kennedy’s space program, producing a giant leap in productivity.

President John F Kennedy visits Cape Canaveral, Fla. on Nov. 16, 1963.
(Courtesy of stateline.org)

The source of wealth is the creative human mind. Over thousands of years, humans have contributed to the development of our planet through our creative-noetic intervention into the universe. All so-called natural resources are made useful by human discoveries and deployed to benefit the propagation of the human race. There is no independent source of wealth. New technologies, discoveries, the by-products of space exploration, are the drivers of a successful economy.

Continuous scientific discovery is responsible for producing robust economic growth, unlike stock trading or monetary gains from speculative financial bubbles. By its practice over recent decades, the U.S. and the rules-based order, have condemned themselves to crumbling and disarray, as President Xi has stated.

Read below my earlier posts related to this topic:

Can U.S. Compete With China? Washington Establishment Has Serious Qualms

Why Is US-Africa Policy So Bad? Decline of American Culture!

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 35 years. He is a teacher, writer, public speaker, consultant on Africa, and an analyst of global strategic relations. Mr. Freeman strongly believes that economic development is an essential human right. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com, also publishes on: lawrencefreeman.substack.com, “Freeman’s Africa and the World, and on X @lkfreemansafrica

Will China’s Global Governance Initiative Replace The West’s Failed “Rules Based Order?”

Lawrence , , , , , , , ,

Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney is credited with publicly proclaiming the final expiration of the rules-based international order. His so called alternative, wrongly acclaimed by the West, might be called rules-based order with a “democratic face,” since it still adheres to the axioms of the old discredited international system minus President Trump.

Column: While “rules-based order” has failed, China’s GGI provides a new vision

Source: Xinhua-January 30, 2026

   

This photo taken on Aug. 12, 2024 shows the Drum Tower seen from the Jingshan Hill on the Beijing Central Axis on a sunny day in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Humanity desperately needs, nay, demands a new paradigm for global governance, which prioritizes economic development, free from wars, regime change and dictates, says a U.S. political-economic analyst for Africa.

Below please review my article published by Xinhua. english.news.cn

by Lawrence Freeman

It should be more than obvious by now that “the rules-based international order” created by the West has failed. Its demise, which has been accelerating in recent years, sounded its death knell at last week’s Davos conference.

This year, 2026, will continue to be turbulent and fraught with the peril of more wars. As the death agony of the international order, which has been controlling relations between nations through its military and economic might, unfolds, civilization is given the opportunity to create a new system founded on the principles of economic development.

“The rules-based order” was established under the control of the political-financial elites of the West that dominated the rest of the world for decades. It may appear to some that it was the actions of the current U.S. president, Donald Trump, that caused its demise. However, that would be inaccurate. President Trump may have accelerated the final stage of the collapse of the rules-based order, but it was always doomed to fail because of its underlying diseased ideology.

“RULES-BASED ORDER” WAS DOOMED

The fatal flaw of “the rules-based order” is its axiomatic belief that people and nations are merely manipulated players in a zero-sum game of victims and victors. Contrary to this false belief, our universe is governed by the human species, uniquely endowed with creativity. We were not created to be ruled by the mighty and the powerful, but by the power of reason. We are human beings, not animals to be culled and controlled. We are not fixed in our behavior, nor is the universe in which we exist. The physical world is not a zero-sum game board of winners and losers, but a developing and expanding universe that is continuously transformed through human creative intervention.

With the inevitable demise of “the rules-based order,” what will come next? This is not an academic question to be leisurely pondered. No, this is a call to arms for all of us to act in creating a new “international order” which corresponds to our unique human quality of creativity.

Unlike the oligarchical formation of “the rules-based order” after World War II, when a large number of nations were still under colonial rule, the new international system must represent the interests of the Global South, the majority of the world’s population.

CHINA’S CONTRIBUTION

Chinese President Xi Jinping unveiled the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) in his address to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on Sept. 1, 2025. He called for a more just and equitable global governance system, echoing the efforts by the developing nations in the 1970s to establish a “New International Economic Order.” Significantly, President Xi introduced a new concept not previously explicitly discussed by world leaders: that the goal of this new governance should be to advance toward a community with a shared future for humanity. This is true because all human beings are universally alike in our most fundamental inborn quality: creative mentation.

This concept represents a fundamental leap in the understanding that all nations have a common self-interest that should guide domestic and foreign policy. As a physical economist, I understand that policy should mean improving the physical standard of living and nurturing the creativity of the population of every nation.

President Xi also said that China is committed to the well-being of all humanity, rejects dividing the world into opposing blocs, and essentially discards outdated notions such as Western centrism.

CHINA’S COMMITMENT

China’s Global Development Initiative (GDI) states unequivocally in the opening sentence of its concept paper: Development is the eternal pursuit of human society. The GDI also emphasizes the eradication of poverty, sustainable development of agriculture and food security, and most importantly, improving industrial production capacity and manufacturing. Economic development is a core pillar of China’s concept of global governance.

There is no clearer demonstration of China’s commitment to the development of all nations than the success of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), introduced by President Xi in the fall of 2013.

In 2025, the BRI achieved new records of economic activity totaling 213.5 billion U.S. dollars, according to a report by the Green Finance and Development Center at Fudan University. It had 128.4 billion dollars in construction contracts, an increase of 81 percent over 2024, and recorded 85.2 billion dollars in investments, an increase of 62 percent. Oil and gas engagements reached 71.5 billion dollars.

Africa was the top region of economic activity for BRI engagement at 61.2 billion dollars, an increase of some 283 percent, with Nigeria at 24.6 billion dollars in construction contracts. Since its inception in 2013, the BRI has had cumulative economic activity of 1.399 trillion dollars in 150 countries around the world, according to the report.

It is indisputable that China, through advancing fundamental principles of economic development, has alleviated the suffering of millions of people in the Global South, where BRI trading partners are concentrated. All Western nations combined have not achieved this level of success in such a short period of time.

Many accept the outlook that we live in a world governed by strength, force and power, according to Stephen Miller, President Trump’s special advisor. That is categorically false. Homo sapiens developed over thousands of years by creative reason, not by force, or survival of the fittest.

Humanity desperately needs, nay, demands a new paradigm for global governance, which prioritizes economic development, free from wars, regime change and dictates. Let the GGI provide the framework for such an enlightened discussion.

Editor’s note: Lawrence Freeman is a U.S. political-economic analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for 35 years.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Xinhua News Agency.■

english.news.cn

Read below my earlier posts on this topic.

Rules Based Order Is Dead, But Trump Didn’t Kill It. Beware of Mark Carney’s Alternative

Rules-Based Order Strategic Mistake to Label China Enemy #1

Rules Based Order in Crisis: Losing Global Domination

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 35 years. He is a teacher, writer, public speaker, consultant on Africa, and an analyst of global strategic relations. Mr. Freeman strongly believes that economic development is an essential human right. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com, also publishes on: lawrencefreeman.substack.com, “Freeman’s Africa and the World, and on X @lkfreemansafrica

Africa’s ‘poverty trap’ more dangerous than so-called debt trap

Lawrence , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta (L) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attend the completion ceremony of the Chinese-built oil terminal at the port of Mombasa in Mombasa, Kenya, January 6, 2022. /Xinhua

Lawrence Freeman

CGTN, January 24, 2022

Editor’s note: Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst on Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. The article reflects the author’s opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

In his visit to Kenya on January 6, 2022, China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, emphasized China’s support for economic progress in Africa, and in particular, the Horn of Africa.

Wang was continuing China’s 32-year-old tradition of having their foreign minister begin each year with an overseas trip to Africa. In the first week of January, Wang met with officials in Eritrea, Kenya and Comoros. Both Eritrea and Kenya are located in East Africa, a region where Ethiopia, the second most populated nation in Africa, is engaged in a 14-month war to defeat an armed insurrection led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. Kenya, an important ally of China, is a key nation in China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Maritime Silk Road.

Eliminating poverty

Wang, in his press conference, focused on the number one challenge facing Africa: poverty and the extremely low standard of living affecting the majority of its 1.4 billion people.

He polemically stated,”If there is any trap in Africa, it is the trap of poverty and the trap of backwardness,” which he counterposed to the so-called debt trap that he referred to as a “speech trap” created by the West. China speaks with authority, which has accomplished a modern day miracle in lifting over 750 million of its people out of extreme poverty and has pledged to help Africa do the same.

A woman fills up her water jerrycan in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, January 1, 2022. /VCG

China’s approach to the current challenges in the Horn of Africa is in stark contrast to that of the U.S. Instead of punishing Eastern African nations with sanctions and economic warfare, China is promoting peace and economic development. According to Wang, China will appoint a special envoy for the region, with the goal:

“To support the Horn of Africa in realizing lasting stability, peace and prosperity, China is willing to put forward the ‘Initiative of Peaceful Development in the Horn of Africa’ and support regional countries in addressing the triple challenges of security, development and governance.”

Emphasizing China’s infrastructure-led economic approach, Wang encouraged nations of the region to “accelerate regional revitalization to overcome development challenges,” adding that “the two principal axes, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, and the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, should be enlarged and enhanced with the aim of expanding to neighboring countries at an opportune moment.”

Wang announced that China would provide an additional 10 million doses of coronavirus vaccine to Kenya which follows President Xi Jinping’s November pledge at the Forum on China Africa Cooperation conference in Dakar, to make 1 billion doses available to Africa.

China’s policy guided by development

The dominant feature of China’s relation to Africa is development, contrary to the Western geopolitical propaganda against China. The infrastructure-driven BRI has made physical improvements in African economies through the construction of railways, roads, power generation capacity, ports and airports. There is not a single Western nation that even remotely compares to China’s level of investment in Africa.

As every African leader knows well, if China were to cease offering loans for infrastructure, there would be no Western nation to address the continent’s huge deficit in the field, and African nations would suffer terribly.

The U.S. has failed to modernize its own rail network and is incapable of building advanced transportation corridors in other countries, while China had constructed around 40,000 kilometers of high-speed rail by the end of 2021.

Unlike U.S. officials who travel to African nations, Chinese representatives do not attach political conditionalities or arrogantly dictate what domestic policies must be adopted by their host countries. Instead, China is thoughtful by responding to the most critical and urgent needs of African nations. That is the elimination of poverty, which necessitates massive investments in hard and soft infrastructure.

Africa-s-poverty-trap-more-dangerous-than-so-called-debt-trap

Read my earlier posts:

Chinese ‘Debt Trap” is a Myth-Biden Would be Wise Not to Continue Trump’s Attacks on China in Africa 

China-Africa Debt Trap Refuted Again. Belt and Road Building Infrastructure-Developing Africa

A Brief Response: Marshall Plan for Africa or “Debt Trap?”

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com. Mr. Freeman’s stated personal mission is; to eliminate poverty and hunger in Africa by applying the scientific economic principles of Alexander Hamilton.

Biden Administration Must Break from Past Practices, to Collaborate with China in Fostering Economic Development in Africa

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CGTN published an abridged version of my article under the title: Biden administration should work with China to boost growth in Africa. https://news.cgtn.com/news/2020-12-16/Biden-administration-should-work-with-China-to-boost-growth-in-Africa-WgaMXPhB0A/index.html

Read below my complete article entitled: 

Biden Administration Must Break from Past Practices to Collaborate with China in Fostering Economic Development in Africa

Lawrence Freeman

December 16, 2020

For the incoming Biden/Harris administration to make a real difference and have positive impact on the lives of hundreds of millions of African still living in poverty, they should work in partnership with China. This would require rejecting and reversing the anti-China mindset of the Trump and Obama administrations, echoed by the current chorus of voices spewing from officials of both the Democratic and Republican parties. A repeat of the defective policies of the last twelve years coupled by the shrill geo-political motivated propaganda against the nation of China, will not only do little for Africa, but it will also harm the United States, and endanger strategic relations. It should be obvious to qualified leaders, as it is to me, that the horrific conditions of life for a majority of Africans, reflects the scope of the continent’s deficit in vital infrastructure. Over 600 million are without access to electricity, over 400 million Africans live in poverty, and several nations are currently threatened with famine. If the two economic power houses, China, and the United States, worked in partnership with African nations, this impoverishment could be eliminated.

US President Donald Trump (L) and China’s President Xi Jinping speak during a joint statement in Beijing on November 9, 2017. (NICOLAS ASFOURI/AFP via Getty Images)

Failures of Trump and Obama

Presidents Trump and Obama similarly failed to understand the necessary requirements to create real-physical economic growth to improve the conditions of life, for America or Africans. Neither comprehend the principles of the American System of economics that built the foundation of the industrialized U.S. Their conception of economics remains dominated by a belief that the wealth of a nation is measured by Wall Street’s monetary values.

US President Donald Trump (L) and China’s President Xi Jinping speak during a joint statement in Beijing on November 9, 2017. (NICOLAS ASFOURI/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump began his presidency establishing an amiable relationship with Chinese President, Xi Jinping. Unfortunately, that quickly deteriorated as Trump propitiated the anti-China prejudices of his supporters.  Although President Trump’s road to the White House was achieved by his status as an outsider to the Washington establishment, it was evident by the second year of his administration that he had acquiesced to the same geo-political world view of his predecessors. Geo-political doctrine speciously asserts that nations are either winners or losers in a zero sum game with the world as a chessboard. That the only interest of a superpower is achieving hegemony, rejecting any conception of a shared common interest among nations. His choice of neocons, Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State, and John Bolton as National Security Advisor in April 2018, left no doubt the direction of President Trump’s foreign policy.

On December 18, 2018, speaking at the Heritage Foundation in Washington DC, Bolton unveiled President Trump’s so called Africa Strategy. In his presentation Bolton defined the goal of U.S. policy in Africa, to wit: stopping China’s advances on the continent. In less than an hour, he attacked China and its Belt and Road seventeen times.  President Trump did not disavow Bolton’s assault on China, nor his demeaning treatment of Africa as a game board for geo-politics. Read President Trump’s Non-African Strategy: Published in AU’s “Invest in Africa” magazine

Prior to President Obama’s anti-China Asian Pivot in January 2012, his administration launched the most destructive military operation against an African nation by any U.S. President. In October 2011, President Obama, advised by UN Envoy Samantha Powers, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Susan Rice and Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, toppled the government of Libya. This irresponsible military adventure resulted: in the death of Libyan President, Muammar Gaddafi; the destruction of the nation of Libya, turning it into a failed state for the last nine years; and unleashing hordes of violent extremists across the Sahel into Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Nigeria, causing tens of thousands of deaths and displacing millions of Africans.

Courtesy CSIS China Power Project

China Delivers Infrastructure

Contrary to U.S. squealing and whining about China’s influence in Africa, Deborah Brautigam of the DC based China Africa Research Initiative, precisely presents the paradox: “China still addresses Africa’s hunger for structural transformation in a way the West does not.” (1)  China has increasingly been engaged with African nations over the last two decades to build vitally needed infrastructure in rail, energy, ports, airports, roads, etc., and the U.S (West) has not.

Courtesy CSIS China Power Project

Take rail for example. Examine China’s commitment to building railroad tracks in Africa, as reported by the Washington think tank, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). (2)

“Between 2008 and 2019, China built an average of 5,464 kilometers (km) of railway track per year. Roughly half of the new track added was high-speed rail. At 35,388 km, China’s high-speed rail network is the largest in the world.” China has built an additional 100,000 km of non-high speed rail track.

According to the CSIS report,

“Chinese companies signed $61.6 billion worth of rail construction contracts from 2013 to 2019 – more than double the value of the previous seven-year period (2006-2012) coinciding with the launch of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in 2013.”

“Africa received the second-highest amount of [China’s] rail contracts from 2013-2019. At $20.8 billion, this accounted for 33.8 percent of the total… About $7.5 billion worth of rail-related construction contracts (36.1 percent of the amount in Africa) were signed with Nigeria, where China is constructing a series of lines that comprise the 1,300 km-long Lagos-Kano Railway Modernization Project. This massive undertaking has made Nigeria the world’s top recipient of Chinese rail construction contracts during the 2013-2019 period.”

Courtesy of dica.logcluster.org

China’s construction of Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway and the Addis Ababa to Djibouti railroad are exemplary of crucial infrastructure projects for Africa.

Michelle Gavin in her December 3 post, The United States and Europe Should Work Together to Promote a Prosperous Africa, expresses the dilemma for U.S.-Africa policy:

“There is no doubt that U.S. influence—and therefore U.S. capacity to achieve various foreign policy goals—suffers when China’s investments in the tangible, visible infrastructure of African prosperity appear (sic) to dwarf U.S. development efforts.” (emphasis added)

Speaking in China on December 8, Rahamtalla Osman, the Permanent Representative for the African Union in China, said, “The goals of the BRI coincide with the AfCFTA,” referring to the African Continental Free Trade Area.

The “Same Old” Will Not Do

As the inauguration of the new U.S. president nears, many words are written extolling how a Biden administration will bring a return to “normalcy, global alliances, international diplomacy.” We should think for a minute. Do we want to return to war, regime change, sanctions, and drone assassinations as the core of U.S. foreign policy? Early indications are that under a President Biden, the U.S. will pursue with our allies, a more belligerent policy with China. How will this realignment shift the world to a higher platform of development? How will it stimulate economic growth in Africa?

Presidents John F Kennedy and President Kwame, Washington DC, Head of State visit- March 1961.

The Biden-Harris agenda for Africa is vague with no specifics to address Africa’s urgent needs. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who is President Elect Biden’s nominee to be envoy to the United Nations, has a deep background in Africa and is respected by many African leaders. Having played a prominent role in the Biden transition team, she may be an individual who can put a focus on Africa in the new administration. However, it is unclear what those policies will be.

The last U.S. president to fully engage in Africa’s development was John F Kennedy, who established a personal relationship with Ghanaian President, Kwame Nkrumah, and gave crucial backing for the construction of the Akosombo Volta Dam complex.

For the incoming administration to genuinely support Africa, the new president should audaciously break from past boundaries of previous thinking and join with China in launching a great mission for mankind: the elimination of poverty in Africa within the next generation through massive infrastructure expansion. That is my mission.

(1) African countries will remain best friends with China, https://www.economist.com/the-world-ahead/2020/11/17/african-countries-will-remain-best-friends-with-china

(2) How Are Foreign Rail Construction Projects Advancing China’s Interests? https://chinapower.csis.org/rail-construction/

 Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in economic development policies for Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com

China Brings Good News for Humankind: Eliminating Poverty and Discovering Abundant Energy for the Future

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Could mining helium-3 from the Moon solve Earth’s energy problems? (courtesy inhabitat.com)

December 6, 2020

Below are updates from EIR news on China’s progress in eliminating poverty and generating abundant energy for the future. Despite continued malicious geo-politically motivated attacks on China, China is making progress that benefits all of humankind. Africa’s relationship with Africa is positive, assisting African nations in building much needed infrastructure. Science and progress must override prejudice. and propaganda.   

China Looking Forward into Helium-3 Future

Related to the ongoing Chinese mission to collect lunar soil samples on the Moon, CGTN is pointing to the vast reserves of helium-3 there, writing on Nov. 26:

“Modern science has revealed that most of the energy we use today originated from sunlight—coal and oil are basically storage of ancient sunlight. Scientists and engineers have been trying to build a smaller sun on Earth for decades. And helium-3 is a great fuel to do that.

“100 tons of helium-3 can generate the energy needed by all humans for a year. And there may be a million tons of helium-3 on the Moon—which can help humans survive another 10,000 years. Building the artificial sun requires many strict conditions, some of which can be easily met on the Moon since the sphere has much less gravity than the Earth.

“Imagine if we don’t need oil anymore. Lots of wars will become pointless and we may enjoy one of the most peaceful ages ever. Isn’t that great? And that’s why we should continue the effort of lunar exploration. China’s international Moon lab could be a good start.”

This is not the first time that CGTN has highlighted the helium-3 issue, but has been a steady companion to most of its coverage of the Chang’e-5 mission since it began. It has also been underlined by many of the researchers involved in the Chang’e-5 project in their briefings on the project.

China Commissioned a Tokamak Fusion Reactor Today!

People’s Daily reports that China began the commissioning of its HL-2M Tokamak nuclear fusion reactor in Chengdu, Sichuan province today, after its installation work was completed. This is the step required for testing operations and verifying functioning of all reactor systems and components before full operation can begin. PhysOrg reports that this tokamak is China’s largest and most advanced, which Chinese scientists plan to use in collaboration with scientists working on the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), which is also a tokamak.

People’s Daily wrote that this “breakthrough has laid a solid foundation for China’s independent design and construction of nuclear fusion reactors… The development of nuclear fusion energy is not only a way to solve China’s strategic energy needs, but also has great significance for the future sustainable development of China’s energy and national economy.”

And of the world development, we might add. (China Nuclear Powered Artificial Sun)

China Lifts Last Nine Counties Out of Absolute Poverty, Achieves Historic End to Poverty in 2020

On Nov. 23, authorities in southwest China’s Guizhou Province announced that they had lifted the last remaining nine counties in their province out of absolute poverty. “This means that all 832 registered poor counties in China have shaken off poverty,” Xinhua reported. At the end of 2019, there were still 52 counties across China on the poverty list. “Earlier this month, all poor counties in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, as well as the provinces of Yunnan, Sichuan and Gansu were lifted out of poverty,” Xinhua reported. With Guizhou now reporting the same, the national goal has been met.

A Global Times op-ed by Yu Shaoxiang Nov. 24 celebrated and explained China’s historic achievement:

“First, China is able to concentrate its efforts on major tasks with strict enforcement of orders and prohibitions. This is what many other countries cannot do….

“Second, based on local conditions, we helped people move out of places such as remote mountains that are not suitable to live in. This was a complex project requiring a great amount of capital and manpower. It also demanded coordination between governments between their origins and place of settlement. The relocation efforts solved the survival problem of many people….

“Third, China has reduced poverty with industrial development. This has been one of the most direct and effective measures to offer long-term solutions for impoverished places. Nowadays, many places around the world are still troubled by poverty. Even in developed capitalist countries there are large numbers of people living under crippling circumstances. Capitalism’s nature of profits at all costs determines that many countries don’t take poverty relief as one of their top priorities….

“Against this backdrop, we can contribute Chinese wisdom to the governance of global poverty. China not only emphasizes poverty reduction, but also avoids situations where people can fall into poverty again…. The elimination of extreme poverty does not mean that the problem of poverty will no longer exist. After all, ‘poverty’ is a relative concept. Therefore, as extreme poverty is now deemed to be officially eliminated, China’s definition of poverty will gradually expand. The goal will be to upgrade from meeting the needs of basic subsistence to living a decent life. These include providing clean drinking water, better health care and education.”

China Daily also weighed in editorially:

“Feeding, clothing and sheltering 1.4 billion people is no easy job. But somehow China has managed to do it. And, in so doing, it has become the first developing country to accomplish the poverty reduction target of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development—and done it 10 years ahead of schedule…. The country has therefore fulfilled its decades-long goal of eliminating absolute poverty. As President Xi Jinping proudly shared with other G20 leaders via video link the other day, lifting more than 700 million people out of poverty in a matter of four decades has been no mean feat….

“The good news from Guizhou came despite the country having to contend with the twin pressures from the economic downturn and the novel coronavirus outbreak.”

 Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in the economic development policy of Africa for over 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com

China Eliminated Poverty With Science and Infrastructure. It Can Be Done in Africa Too!

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China's Long March Out of Poverty | African Agenda – A new ...
Deng Xiaoping, who put China firmly on the path of “reform and opening up.

August 14, 2020

If one examines the long path from the end of China’s disastrous “cultural revolution” in the 1970s to China’s 2020 modern miracle of eliminating poverty for 800 million Chinese, many lessons can be learned. China’s commitment to science and building infrastructure were two essential ingredients for this accomplishment.  William Jones discusses this interesting history in his article below,”China’s Long March Out of Poverty”.

China Employs Hamilton’s Principles of Credit  for Railroads

(EIRNS) —China’s exciting announcement of its plan to increase the pace of development of maglev and its high-speed rail network, is based on its assurance that it knows how to implement that, and to finance it on top-down principles of the type proposed by Alexander Hamilton.

China announced its plans to build a system of 600 kph (373 mph) maglev vehicles, after it successfully conducted its maiden test run of a maglev vehicle at a test track at Tonji University in Shanghai on June 21. Though the train-set did not run at top speed of 600 kph, but at a lower speed, various important features were tested. Prototype vehicles are approved for construction in 2021, and up to nine new maglev lines, totalling over 1,000 km (600 miles), are planned for the future.

Equally impressive, China’s plan to double its existing 35,000 km of high-speed rail already in operation, to 70,000 km by 2035, shows how a Confucian/Hamiltonian economy actually works. Based on estimates by the Lange Steel Information Research Center in Beijing, reported by the Wall Street Journal, China would have spent $180 billion for 35 approved railway projects in 2019, most of them high-speed rail, launching the next phase of HSR development.

In the first half of 2020, according to the Aug. 13 *China Daily), China invested $207 billion in combined railway, highway, waterway and civil aviation infrastructure, of which $46.9 billion was in railways. China’s transportation infrastructure investment alone, is 5-10 times that of every country on Earth. Featured in China’s railway investment is a new, 1700 km high-speed rail system between Chengdu, Sichuan and Lhasa, Tibet; high-speed rail in landlocked Shaanxi Province, etc.

China finances the rail and other critical infrastructure, through two methods of directed credit: China’s four largest state-owned commercial banks—the Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China, and the China Construction Bank—make ample loans directly to the China Railway company, the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC), which builds the rail equipment, etc. This is overseen by China’s three “policy banks.”

Second, the national government and local governments purchase bonds issued by China Railway Corporation, CRRC, and so forth.

China has announced its new rail construction program. The government plans to build 200,000 km of rail by 2035, about 70,000 of which will be high-speed rail. All cities with a population of 200,000 or more will be connected by rail, and all cities with 500,000 people or more will be connected by high-speed rail. China is also working on the next generation maglev train that could travel at speeds of 600 kph.

Pause for a moment from your daily activity. Let your imagination look into the future, and ponder what the nations of Africa would look like if, all cities with 200,000 people or more were connected by railroads. The topology of the continent would be different. China has proved it can be done. It is not a matter of Africa following the China model. Rather, it is comprehending the scientific principles of Alexander Hamilton’s economic system. Read my earlier posts: Alexander Hamilton’s Credit System Is Necessary for Africa’s Development and Nations Must Study Alexander Hamilton’s Principles of Political Economy

 

Click to access 45-54_4726.pdf

In his article below, William Jones provide an insightful analysis of the forces behind the anti-China mantra, rampant in the Trump administration.

As the ‘Five Eyes’ gear up to confront China, can anyone say that the British Empire is a thing of the past?

“A recent article published in the China Economic Diplomacy Watch pointed to the “Five Eyes” – the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand – as the key rallying group for Pompeo’s call for a containment policy toward China. The article has indicated a crucial element in the danger the world is facing. The unifying factor in this grouping is, firstly, that the “Five Eyes” are all English-speaking countries, and secondly, that they all at one time or the other belonged to the British Empire.”

Lawrence Freeman is a Political-Economic Analyst for Africa, who has been involved in the economic development policy of Africa for 30 years. He is the creator of the blog: lawrencefreemanafricaandtheworld.com

End Racism Against China: CORONAVIRUS is a Human Disease

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Director-General of the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, praised China for its efforts to contain the Coronavirus. (Courtesy of CGTN)

February 7, 2020

I concur with the statement below by Mrs LaRouche from the German based Schiller Institute. China is making an heroic effort to contain the Coronavirus, and I might add without international support. While President Trump supports President  Xi Jinping, the US has given no assistance. Building a new hospital from scratch in 9 days is nothing short of stupendous! Racism against China, by many of US elected officials, fellow citizens, and some of my African friends, must end. China has emerged as a global power. A more thoughtful policy would be for the United States to collaborate with China and Russia to find solutions to various strategic crises endangering peace and security in the world. 

CHINA DESERVES PRAISE AND COOPERATION IN THE FIGHT AGAINST THE CORONA VIRUS

By Helga Zepp-LaRouche

The name of the German weekly magazine “Der Spiegel” actually means in English, “The Mirror.”  And indeed what you see this week on the cover page of the print version of Der Spiegel—a person with a gas mask, goggles, earphones and a hoody⁠—is the mirror image of the ugly face of the racism of its editors. The caption “Corona-virus Made in China” should actually be “The ugly face of the racist monster Spiegel.”

This piece of yellow trash journalism was so bad that the Chinese embassy in Germany issued a formal complaint on their website. The notorious Jylllands-Posten of Denmark had an equally disgusting so-called cartoon putting the corona virus on the Chinese flag. Various American so-called mainstream media use the abdominal racist term “The Yellow Peril.”  What all of these portrayals demonstrate is the ugly reality of an obviously deep-seated racism under a very thin varnish of “western values.”

The reality of the matter is, that the Director General of the WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has praised China repeatedly for the excellent handling of the epidemic, noting that China has set a new standard of dealing with such problems. That the Chinese government had published a full genome-mapping of the new variants within days of the outbreak made it easier for scientists in other countries to start working on possible vaccines, but also that China has made significant breakthroughs in the biological sciences over the past 15-20 years. Other health officials stated that the response of the Wuhan regional government and the dissemination of information was “state of the art“ and that an extremely impressive quantity of new information contained in their daily updates had been published since December 31st/January 1st.

To call any virus a “Chinese” virus is as silly as to say that it is someone’s fault if he catches the flu or gets sick in general. It can happen anywhere in the world and it can happen to every person on the planet. The lesson from this recent case of the reaction to the outbreak of the coronavirus is that it shows who in the international community is capable of responding to dangers that threaten all of humanity, and who is a troglodyte, and who is not.

If  Europe and the US want to be credible in talking about “human rights” and “western values” then they should join hands with China and cooperate on the fight to defeat the coronavirus. The coronavirus and the fact that every year 100,000s of people get killed by the influenza shows how urgent it is to make new breakthroughs in the fundamental understanding of living processes to overcome what are today, life threatening diseases.  Europe and the US should also cooperate with the most future oriented vision on the international agenda, namely the extension of the BRI into south west Asia and Africa and the international cooperation in the Space Silk Road.

For sure we should reflect on the actuality of the judgment of Gottfried Leibniz who said:

“In any case it seems that the situation of our present conditions in light of the growing moral decadence is such that it almost seems necessary that Chinese missionaries are sent to us, who could teach us the application and practices of natural theology….I therefore believe, that if a wise man would be elected not to judge about the beauty of goddesses, but about the excellence of peoples, he would give the golden apple to the Chinese.”

I think Leibniz was a lot wiser than Der Spiegel, Jyllands-Posten and New York Times. 

For more background read: Act on the Novel Coronavirus Immediately!

China’s Successful Economic Model Eliminates Poverty

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China’s new Magnetic Levitation train for 2020 will be able to travel 360 miles per hour. (courtesy of (Motor1.com)

November 11, 2019

The article below by Helga Zepp LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, provides a useful overview of China’s successful economic model. However, Chinese leaders have repeatedly pointed out that they are not asking other nations to adopt this model for their emerging economies. 

“Rather than seeing the rise of China as a threat, we in the West should acknowledge the enormous benefits for mankind flowing from the unprecedented economic miracle that China has achieved in the past 40 years. Unfortunately, most people in the United States and Europe know very little about China and its 5,000-year-old culture, which makes it relatively easy for the geo-politically motivated mainstream media and exponents of the anti-China lobby to paint a completely distorted picture of the country.

“In fact, China has opened a new, totally inspiring chapter of universal history, by setting an irrefutable example, for all other developing countries, of a way to overcome poverty in a relatively short period of time and achieve a good standard of living for a growing segment of its population. Over the past 40 years, China has implemented the most massive anti-poverty program in human history, lifting 850 million of its own citizens out of poverty, and contributing 70% of the total global poverty alleviation efforts. Its average economic growth from 1978 to 2018 was an impressive 9.5% per year, and even the decline this year to only 6% growth, due to various factors, still represents a level that European nations and the United States can only dream of.”

Read: The Secret of China’s Success Model