The Hill News

When it comes to dealing with China, the United States has experienced nothing short of an identity crisis: from big stick diplomacy, to use of (at times) a bigger carrot, to somewhere in the middle. The twenty-one gun salute slated to greet President Hu Jintao upon his arrival in Washington this week should serve as a wake-up call for U.S. policymakers. Indeed, Paul Revere’s words of warning from 1775 seem apt. China is coming, and as was the case with Great Britain, it’s now up to the U.S. to develop a well thought-out plan.

Considering recent economic events, this is arguably for good reason. As U.S. prospects for growth remain sluggish, China quickly recovered from the global recession and is experiencing meteoric 9.3 percent growth. It recently passed Japan and is now the world’s second largest economy, is the third largest holder of foreign debt reserves, is leading the way in developing trade relationships with emerging markets in Asia, Africa, a! nd Latin America. China is also leading the world in investing in alternative energy and nano-sensory diagnostics, while securing the rare-earth materials necessary to develop innovative technologies of the future. 

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