China and a New Balance of Power
China, like many in Europe, favors establishing a multi-polar global order that can impose a check on US power. For that reason, it welcomes the EU's enlargement and the development of the European Security and Defense Policy.
SHANGHAI – The last rival superpower to the United States, the Soviet Union, collapsed in 1991. But, apart from its military strength, the USSR was never really powerful enough to counterbalance US influence. In the late 1980’s, Japan seemed capable of challenging America’s industrial leadership, but by the 1990’s it lost its competitive edge. China might itself wish to be a major force in a multi-polar world, but has been plagued by its lack of overall strength. Given these realities, China sees the expanding European Union as a likely counterweight to unchecked US power.
SHANGHAI – The last rival superpower to the United States, the Soviet Union, collapsed in 1991. But, apart from its military strength, the USSR was never really powerful enough to counterbalance US influence. In the late 1980’s, Japan seemed capable of challenging America’s industrial leadership, but by the 1990’s it lost its competitive edge. China might itself wish to be a major force in a multi-polar world, but has been plagued by its lack of overall strength. Given these realities, China sees the expanding European Union as a likely counterweight to unchecked US power.