[Compiled/ Observer Network Qi Qian] The American " News Weekly " published an article on October 25 saying that China defeated the United States for the first time in the " Ideological and political struggle" that won the favor of the people of in developing countries. Because these countries have lost confidence in the so-called "liberal and democratic countries" in the world.
According to the latest poll by the University of Cambridge, the Centre for the Future of Democracy, UK, 62% of the people in developing countries support China and 61% support the United States.
Screenshot of US media reports
This result was concluded through the merger of 30 global polls, which cover 137 countries and represent 97% of the world's population.
"Newsweek" stated that although there is only 1 percentage point difference between China and the United States, data shows that since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict on February 24, the world has become increasingly polarized: in the past 10 years, the so-called "democratic countries" in the West have become more determined to support the United States and anti-China and Russia, and many Eastern European, Asian, and West African countries have moved closer to China and Russia.
"Democratic Future Center" poll results show that among the 1.2 billion people living in "free and democratic" countries, 75% have negative views on China, and 87% have negative views on Russia; data on developing countries are completely opposite. Among the remaining 6.3 billion people in the world, 70% have good feelings for China and 66% have good feelings for Russia.
This division has formed over the past decade as China and Russia (especially China) expand its influence in developing countries through investment and trade, and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has exacerbated this division. Data shows that despite the continued conflict between Russia and Ukraine, about 75% of respondents in South Asia, 68% of French-speaking Africa and 62% of Southeast Asia have a positive attitude towards Russia.
"Center for the Future of Democracy" wrote in its report: "The world is torn apart by two opposing groups. One is the so-called "democratic countries" alliance led by the United States, and the other is the camp of Eurasian and African countries centered on China and Russia."
Why do China and Russia gain increasing support in developing countries? Newsweek believes that there are two main reasons.
First, developing countries are increasingly aware of the shortcomings of the democratic system of "free countries".
According to the "Center for the Future of Democracy", among the countries where most citizens have a good impression of Russia, 7 out of every 10 countries are dissatisfied with the (Western-style) democracy performance; among the countries where most citizens have a positive view of China, the majority of people in three quarters are dissatisfied with the (Western-style) democracy performance.
Secondly, there are economic reasons behind China's support in developing countries.
Since China launched the "Belt and Road" initiative in 2013, more than 140 countries have participated in it and are used to build energy infrastructure and transportation projects. Of the 4.6 billion people in the countries supporting the initiative, almost two-thirds of the people have a positive view of China.
This article is an exclusive article of Observer.com and may not be reproduced without authorization.
