Thread by @theChinaDude

A longish thread about the new @USCC_GOV report on China. So far, I’ve managed to go through the summaries of all chapters. Much more to tuck into. But a short take is that it’s very clear-sighted yet not necessarily really introspective. Anyway, here's some points.

The report captures the strategic shift, i.e., that China is an "unprecedented economic rival" and "growing military threat." And that Beijing views competition with US from an ideological lens.

What's more, this is not seen as a phenomenon limited to Xi Jinping's rule. Belief that political change in Beijing leading to some sort of possible rebalance seems have have completely eroded.

Of course, technology is critical to this contest for leadership going ahead. Here's the view on China's quest.

I thought this bit about the impact of the pandemic was well done. The last sentence was honest in the acknowledgement that China's pandemic diplomacy hasn't been a complete failure and cannot be measured just by Pew Survey of public opinion in Western countries.

On China's approaches to and use of international institutions, this was rather succinct. The example of peacekeeping in Africa is also worth noting.

A really good summary of the impact of the pandemic on China's economy. I am no economist, but from what I've managed to read through the year, this sums things up very well

This is another under-reported perspective. There's some evidence of Beijing shifting on this implicit guarantee - Baoshang Bank, and recent bond defaults point to this. But let's see how this plays out.

The bit about China's financial sector opening is also interesting. This was part of the Phase 1 deal; and one would assume that these firms will be a powerful lobby group seeking to shape US' China policy under Biden. I recommend this story for context: wsj.com/articles/china…

On the PLA, there are a few interesting bits, i.e., defining what a world class PLA implies and current priorities for operational improvement.

There will be much more as I read further, but this was a staggering statistic. "Chinese firms partially own or operate nearly 100 ports globally, more than half of which involve a Chinese SOE."

Next, this framing of the Taiwan situation is interesting. My caveat is that I'll have to check if this is different from earlier reports. But anyway, thought it was important that this is being framed from US power's credibility POV.

Finally, some recommendations that I thought were interesting. I'd rethink the bit on reciprocity with regard to media. But others are interesting. So expect tighter investment scrutiny. An annual report on China at the UN's a good sign of US willingness to compete

There can be big opportunities for US and India in the pharma - healthcare sector.

And here are two key points on Taiwan and Hong Kong. Let's see how this plays out.