To date, Xi has made 3 big mistakes in the coronavirus era: (1) covering up the initial outbreak (2) blaming the US for the virus (3) kicking out Western journalists. He also has 2 wins: (1) success in containing the virus at home, and (2) providing assistance to other countries.
To contain, compete & at times cooperate with China in the 21st century, we need sober, data-driven analysis of Chinese Communist Party motivations & behavior (as Kennan taught about the Soviets in the early days of the Cold War). Accurate diagnostics will shape better policy.
To be clear, I'm a consumer of such research/analysis, not a producer. Our academic and policy community for studying China is deep. Let's listen to them. Let's not oversimplify, cartoonize, or politicize our knowledge about China.(That's another bitter lesson from the Cold War.)
A follower rightly added a 4th mistake (4) not closing borders.
