Challenges of China As New Super Power Country

Research Center INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DIVISION Expertise Agency of DPR RI Gd. Nusantara I Lt. 2 Jl. Jend. Gatot Subroto Jakarta Pusat - 10270 c 5715409 d 5715245 m [email protected] A BRIEF STUDY OF ACTUAL AND STRATEGIC ISSUES Vol.XII No. 14/II/Puslit/July/2020

CHALLENGES OF CHINA AS NEW SUPER POWER COUNTRY Ziyad Falahi and Poltak Partogi Nainggolan 7 Abstract China's rapid economic progress in recent decades has driven its expansion as a new military and political power at regional and global levels. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) campaign and the country's ability to overcome the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, that has left the US powerless, have solidified China's position as a new world superpower country. China's maneuvers in various regions, especially Asia Pacific, are then faced assertive responses both politically, economically and militarily by the US, Japan, India and Australia onsite and multilateral diplomacy forums, because it has changed the existing world order, with new implications it brings. This writing analyzes China's aggressive maneuvers as a new superpower country and the response of other large countries in various regions that have created a new escalation of tensions and the Cold War and threaten the interests of many countries, including Indonesia

Introduction global level. China's post-1978 economic The new capacity of China reforms under Deng Xiaoping created under Xi Jinping's have brought great success in leadership has made this country changing the face of a large, poor unchallenged and possesses and underdeveloped country into a extraordinary bargaining new world superpower country in power, causing fear, both in the various sectors. With an economic neighboring large country and the growth rate of above two digits US as the sole superpower country for decades and continuing to that won the previous Cold War. grow dynamically above 7% as President Xi's ability to overcome the world faces recent economic the Covid-19 pandemic supports difficulties, China has emerged as China's new achievements to a new superpower country. China's lead the world, taking over from PUSLIT BKD economic capacity continues to the receding US leadership in expand to various regions and various regions. China's ability to reach out marginal countries, control the spread of pandemic thereby encouraging an increase contamination has allowed Xi to in military and political power at immediately reopen factories in his country by the end of March 2020 to the US investment, is a matter of quickly recover the economy. time waiting for its development. It was later found that China's However, of course, the US as economic growth, that was not the world superpower country matched by its main rival, the US, already eliminated, and other big had encouraged the developed powers in the region, such as Japan imperialism spirit in various and India, will not remain silent, countries and regions. This is a considering that they face threats of logical consequence of the rapid similar interests, in various areas, success of the country's capitalist either economically, politically or development since Deng Xiaoping's militarily, or from the aspect of modernization was declared. defense and security. China's economic expansion then This writing analyzes the motivated the development of the challenges that have emerged country's armed forces, not only and faced by China in line with 8 to fulfill the interests of protecting the country's claim of being domestic defense and security, but superpower, that can disrupt the also its national interests which continuity of its current hegemony then grew rapidly and followed and imperialism passion interests. it overseas. It is not surprising The study and analysis were then that the military expanded its viewed from three perspectives, wings, reaching across regions and namely economic, military and corners of the world, supported politic, using literature study and by the development of advanced qualitative analysis. nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers that rival Economic Challenges the military power of its rivals, The emergence of China, as especially the US. a competitor to the US economic The emergence of China as a superpower and gains a direct new economic superpower country, challenge from the US, has which with its high capacity is surfaced since 2008, when the US able to offer assistance with all President Barack Obama at the concessions to many countries G-20 forum emphasized that China in various regions, especially in has caused disturbance to global times of crisis, has helped this balance. Obama's opinion was country rapidly shift the role of conveyed in response to China's the US for decades. Maneuvers ambitious initiative to join the of Chinese naval ships in the axis of economic power of Brazil, Pacific and Indian Ocean that are Russia, India and China (BRICs) increasingly aggressive balance after being established in 2009. the aggressiveness of its capital China, with its smartness, to make and investment power that had this axis stronger in dominating grown rapidly and unstoppable. the world economy, invited South The development of Chinese power Africa, which is rich in its potential in other regions, including Africa, gold natural resources, to join, thus that has been marginalized so far threatening the US superiority. and is scarce from the reach of In other words, China wanted to strengthen its position as a global the Xi Jinping regime campaigned economic superpower, while earlier, by involving other global strengthening its liquidity, by economic powers, namely Russia, relying on global gold reserves, that that was once the back bone of the was finally read by the US, which superpower countries of the Soviet immediately launched a blockage Union, an ally of China, and vice response. versa, the enemy of the US, in the China realized that the Cold War era. development of its country could The Trans-Atlantic was not be separated from its success paralyzed midway, but the fight of in maintaining its political system the US and its allies against China that remains closed to democracy. could not be ignored in the new China's success in the early 21st RCEP (Regional Comprehensive century itself has actually shown Economic Partnership), pushed by 9 significant progress, with the ASEAN, with China also involved achievement of economic growth as a member state along with other reaching two digits. The new post- ASEAN partners, namely Australia, Deng government consistently China, New Zealand, Japan, South applies the thought of pragmatism, Korea and India, since 2012. If it “it doesn't matter if a cat is black or develops well, without rivalries white as long as it catches mice.” and new problems in it, RCEP is This practice has opened China anticipated to surpass BRICs, where to the success of getting a lot of China has entered as the driving investment and cooperation widely force to dominate the Pacific with many countries, because it is economy. supported by a stable monolithic With the high level of government system. A stable interdependence of its member authoritarian political system has countries, RCEP is estimated to realistically helped China gain trust collect one-third of the world GDP. of foreign investors who are always However, since the end of 2019, pragmatic. as a result of being threatened China's challenge at regional by the development of the and global levels through the China's economic performance economic bloc came from the US. Its and expansion, its large member rival, who is China's longtime Cold country, India, began to reconsider War competitor, tried to hinder its position. As a consequence, and encircle China's economic RCEP was not prospective in expansion by launching a new providing an alternative solution cooperation initiative of Trans- to China's economic domination Atlantic Partnership, that will outside BRICs. Gouguang be supported by the US, Europe Wu (2011) stated that China is and other countries in different experiencing a paradoxical option, region, fought since 2010. The US which on the one hand surged considered the importance of the by achievements of its economic Trans-Atlantic Partnership idea to progress, however, on the other block the development of the New hand, it faces challenges of growth Silk Road cooperation idea, which target in the future. Indeed, for almost two in Fiji. Meanwhile, in Timor Leste, decades China has been the its warships have utilized the country with the largest GDP country's seaports after supporting (Growth Domestic Product) in its modern infrastructure the world, with high capital and construction. This development investment flows. Not surprisingly, was then seriously responded by the investment reaches the the Australian Navy by building infrastructure development of poor its military infrastructure in Papua countries in South Asia, such as New Guinea, other than in New Sri Lanka, Timor Leste and Fiji in Zealand, recently, that has made Asia Pacific, and even the African countries in the South Pacific region continent. Thus, challenges arise its main partners. Australia has from large countries such as India, built its nuclear umbrella with the Japan and Australia. US to protect itself from China's ICBM nuclear range (Nainggolan, 10 Military Challenges 2018: 72-80). The simultaneous Simultaneously, the emergence of China as an construction of military power, economic superpower country especially China's naval power, has been supported by building faced challenges from the US of its military power, with the and other large countries, such construction of bases in its as Japan, India and Australia. In backyard, namely the South China the East China Sea region, and Sea, and in other regions, such as also currently in the South China Sri Lanka, Timor Leste and Fiji. Sea, the Chinese Navy maneuvers The Chinese Navy (AL), is now have been overshadowed by the supported by two modern nuclear- Japanese Navy with the title of powered aircraft carriers, Liaoning aircraft carriers and warships and and Shandong, that carry J-15 warplanes. In the Indian Ocean, fighter jets. The Chinese Navy is the Indian Navy often carries out increasingly being feared by the operations to overshadow Chinese operation of its warships where naval maneuvers. In the South the quantity and quality have been China Sea, in response to the title increased, thus they can operate in of the Chinese Navy, the US has areas far from their home country. more often sent its three aircraft Unexpectedly, driven by the carriers, namely USS Nimitz, USS pressure of an aggressive stance Ronald Reagan and USS Theodore and the high need for expansion, Roosevelt. The US allies hoped for China has carried out a massive the procurement of the latest F-35A and very serious construction and F-35B fighting aircraft from the of military base in the South US, to be able to respond to Chinese China Sea, following an intensive threats effectively (Nainggolan, reclamation program. This step 2018: 48, 52-53, 61, 69). Meanwhile, was continued by the construction the construction of Chinese military of military base and installations bases and installations on the in South Asia, namely in Sri Lanka, African continent, namely Djibouti, and in the South Pacific, namely has triggered the US response, with the construction of its Africom outside the Asia Pacific region. China military force. forced other countries to comply with security and navigation policies and Political Challenges protocols in the waters it introduced. Political challenges are faced Meanwhile, the US, the largest user by China in its increasingly fierce and controller of security stability in economic enmity with the US, that international waters has had harassed has created a trade war, followed by and refused to comply. Wars of rivalry of military power, that has words have sprung up in various colored the international political international forums and media to forums. A clear example is in the strengthen each other's positions and Palestinian issue, that affects the stances. Australia, Japan and India stance of the two countries at the supported the US political stances and United Nations and in the conflict responses in international forums, 11 area of the Middle East. President by encouraging multilateralism Trump definitively suported the solutions. desire of the unilateral Zionist government of PM Netanyahu to Closing annex the West Bank area, which Development shows the includes the Jordan Valley and Gaza emergence of China as a new Strip. Meanwhile, President Xi Jinping superpower country with various firmly rejected the plan to annex the challenges it faces logically from Palestinian territories, which was not superpower and big powers countries in line with the UN balanced solution in various regions, in the field of already outlined in many resolutions, economy, military and politic. The particularly regarding the status of current world situation, marked by Jerusalem City. the emergence of a new superpower In the latest developments, country, China, in reality does not widespread competition between automatically guarantee the creation China and the United States has of world conditions marked by penetrated foreign policy and security stability. This is because new diplomacy. Trump's stance that rivalries between two superpower is increasingly out of control has countries, namely China and the US, triggered his decision to close the have emerged in these three fields, Chinese Consulate General's office that have penetrated into various in Houston, USA. This provoked a regions and countries. Of course, if strong reaction from China that took the world wants to be able to prevent equal action in the field of foreign the outbreak of a new open conflict, policy. Beijing also issued an order it needs a response to strengthen the for the closing of the US Consulate in role of the United Nations, with a Chengdu, Sichuan, no later than July balanced multilateralism solution. 27, 2020. During this period, in various References international forums discussing the Benarrous, Julia, Paul Handley & South China Sea, the US continued Leo Ramirez. 2020. ”US China to criticize the China's unilateral Diplomatic Ties Fray: Wold action that tried to dictate countries Powers Tussling Over an Increasing Number of Issues.” Paling Terdampak,” Kompas, The Jakarta Post, July 26, 2020, July 24, 2020, Page 4. page 8. Subramanian, Arvind. 2011. “The Felix, Mark. 2020. ”Tensions Soar Inevitable Superpower: Why as US Orders China Consulate China Dominance is a Sure Shut,” The Jakarta Post, July 24, Thing”, Foreign Affair, Vol 90 2020, Page 8. (5). 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Ziyad Falahi Poltak Partogi Nainggolan [email protected] [email protected]

Ziyad Falahi, M.Sc., completed his Bachelor Degree in International Relations at Airlangga University in 2010. Graduated from his Master Degree in International Relations at the University of Indonesia in 2012. He currently serves the First Researcher in the field of International Relations at the Research Center of Expertise Body of the Secretariat General of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia.

Prof. Dr. phil. Poltak Partogi Nainggolan, MA, completed his education of Bachelor Degree in Political Science and International Relations, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Indonesia in 1986, Master Degree in Political Science and International Relations at the University of Birmingham (UK) in 1999, and doctoral program in Political Science and International Relations at Albert Ludwigs Universitaet Freiburg (Deutschland) in 2011 with judicium magna cumlaude. He is a Research Professor in the field of International Relations at the Research Center of Expertise Body of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia. Some scientific papers already published in journals and books include: “Indonesia dan Rivalitas China, Jepang, dan India (Indonesia and Revalry of China, Japan and India)” (2018) and “Proxy War di Timur Tengah (Proxy War in the Middle East)” (2020).

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