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Ji Siqi

“The East is rising and the West is declining.”
This notion, often obliquely referenced by President Xi Jinping, has resonated among Chinese academics, particularly since the return of Donald Trump to the White House. Over the past week, two high-level forums held in China seemed designed to make the case for it.
On Sunday, more than 80 heads of leading multinationals like Apple, BMW and Ikea – along with chiefs of international organisations and prominent global scholars – attended the China Development Forum in Beijing.
The annual event, which began in 2000, is typically one of the few venues where foreign business leaders may have a chance to interact with high-ranking Chinese officials after the “Two Sessions” parliamentary gathering where economic goals are laid out. Compared to previous years, this year’s pool of CEOs appeared to be more diversified, though executives from US companies still made up the largest group of attendees.
In the keynote address, Premier Li Qiang delivered a clear thesis on behalf of his country: we should work together to resist the United States’ protectionism and safeguard globalisation.
Not long after, many at this forum hopped onto planes bound for the southern island province of Hainan, where they would take part in another. At the Boao Forum for Asia, they shared their optimism for China’s rising role in the global stage, as well as their disappointment in the US’ retreat from global institutions.
One was Oxford University economist Ian Goldin, who was present in Beijing as well as Boao. “People don’t want to go to a conference in the US any more since Trump,” he said. “Because there are issues on visas, and they’re getting stopped at the borders and asked questions.”
As the US has spent time putting up walls, Beijing has been comparatively open; it has made visa-free entry easier for most foreign nationals, and the strong international presence at the two forums showed the policy has borne some fruit.

“I have come to China so many times, and this is the first time I need only show my passport,” said John Keane, a politics professor at the University of Sydney.
Before coming to Boao, Keane wrote two commentaries for the Post. One of them voiced confidence in the rising status of the world’s second-largest economy – and credited the US with aiding it in the process.
“Thanks to the US, technically speaking, China is no longer merely a ‘country’ or a ‘big power’,” he wrote. “It is an empire on the rise.”
But it might be too early for China to celebrate. If recent years are any indication, sudden, dramatic reversals have become a fact of life.
I still remember a similar event from two and a half years ago, a Milken Institute conference in Singapore. The main impression I had from the panel discussions was that China was being written off by the rest of the world; at that time the country was still keeping itself closed off under its zero-Covid policy, even as borders reopened almost everywhere else.
Accordingly, the mood at these events was not entirely triumphant. During a talk in Boao on Thursday, former president of the Asian Development Bank Takehiko Nakao said while he respects China and admires certain aspects of the country’s development, this does not mean it has not made any mistakes.
There’s a lot of anti-China sentiment … I hope it changes. I think a lot of it is misguided, but it exists
Ian Goldin, Oxford University
China should try to be more modest, he added; instead of declaring to the international community that it represents a new world order, it can convey its position in a more moderate way.
While resentment is mounting towards the US administration in the rest of the Western world, negative views on China are still deeply rooted there.
Thus, the foreign CEOs and scholars who choose to come to China and speak up at this time are “brave”, Goldin said, because they will be criticised when they go home.
“There’s a lot of anti-China sentiment in the US. It’s very strong, deep and wide. The same thing is in Europe, but to a lesser extent,” he said. “I hope it changes. I think a lot of it is misguided, but it exists.”
Goldin said one thing Beijing could do to improve its image is openly address some long-standing concerns, or negative impressions people in the West hold towards China.
“I’d say there’s a lot of responsibility on people in the US, but there’s also some responsibility in China. In all of this, China is not a passive actor. It can do things like visa [exemptions], which are just technical, but also in terms of the feelings of other people.”


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Boao Forum for Asia

China’s week of forums a reminder of how quickly things can change

At the China Development Forum and Boao Forum for Asia, a more international crowd was present than at recent high-profile events in China. Photo: Reuters

China’s Premier Li Qiang speaks during the opening ceremony of the China Development Forum at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Photo: AFP

Ji Siqi speaks to Samsung’s Lee Jae-yong at the China Development Forum in Beijing on Sunday. Photo: Su Yue

Stephen Roach says trade war puts US on course for ‘cultural revolution’

Economist Stephen Roach has said US President Donald Trump’s policies are challenging the country “from within”. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Former officials call for parity, reform in China’s pension system

China’s basic pension system should be reformed to ensure benefits are fairly distribution and coverage is adequate, former banking officials said. Photo: Xinhua

As Beijing hails untapped Asian partnerships at Boao Forum, Hong Kong vows to do more

Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang visits a one-stop aircraft maintenance base of the Hainan Free Trade Port in south China’s Hainan province on Monday. Photo: Xinhua

Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang visits a middle school in China’s Hainan province on Tuesday. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese economist calls US trade war ‘negative-sum’ game at Boao Forum

Economists have cautioned the rapid tariff increases put into place by US President Donald Trump threatens the stability and openness of global trade. Photo: Reuters

Chinese economist Zhang Yuyan has spoken out forcefully about the potential harms of a full-blown trade war to all parties involved. Photo: Xinhua

China is prepared for bigger than expected external shocks: Premier Li Qiang

Chinese Premier Li Qiang says foreign firms are indispensable to China’s development. Photo: AP

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At high-profile gatherings this week, notions of China’s rise and the West’s decline were in vogue – but in today’s world, attitudes change fast


At high-profile gatherings this week, notions of China’s rise and the West’s decline were in vogue – but in today’s world, attitudes change fast.


China’s week of forums a reminder of how quickly things can change

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}At high-profile gatherings this week, notions of China’s rise and the West’s decline were in vogue – but in today’s world, attitudes change fast

At high-profile gatherings this week, notions of China’s rise and the West’s decline were in vogue – but in today’s world, attitudes change fast