What Americans don't understand about China's power

Chinese leaders stretching back to Deng Xiaoping have often thought in terms of decades. A decade encompasses two of China's famous five-year plans, and it's a long enough period to notice real changes in a country's trajectory.

As it happens, I spent time in China at both ends of the decade that just ended, first in 2010 and again recently. And I was left with one main conclusion: China has just enjoyed a very good decade.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on January 18, 2020, with the headline What Americans don't understand about China's power. Subscribe