People cannot choose their parents and backgrounds, and the country also has things that they cannot choose. For example, the geographical location of a country is naturally destined. A state is composed of basic elements such as territory, population, and regime. Only with territory can a certain population be supported, and only with population can one engage in production and establish a regime. The history, culture, customs, etc. of any country are developed based on a certain geographical environment. The differences in life patterns and thinking habits of people in different countries are more or less related to differences in geographical environment.
Although the geographical environment is crucial to the development of human history, there is actually no absolute difference between good and bad in the geographical environment. The geographical environment of any country has both advantages and disadvantages. If you fly from the east coast of the United States to the west coast, you will see the endless plains , but if you fly from eastern China to western China, you can see various geographical environments such as plains, hills, plateaus, and deserts. The geographical environment of the United States' Great Plains is of course beneficial from the perspective of farming and transportation, but such a terrain means no danger to be defended from a military perspective. Of course, today's United States, as the world's number one power, does not need to consider too much about national defense issues.
plus the United States has oceans in both east and west directions as natural geopolitical barriers, while Canada in the north and Mexico in the south cannot threaten the United States. But all this is based on the strong enough of the United States itself. In fact, when the United States was not strong enough, it was worried about the threat from British Canada. On the other hand, China's different geographical environments such as mountains, plateaus, and deserts constitute the natural advantage of national land defense. In addition, China's land area is vast enough, it has a vast strategic depth. When China counterattacked foreign invasion in modern times, it used such a broad strategic depth to exchange space for time .
From this example, we can see that the geographical environment is actually not absolutely good or bad. The environment you think is unfavorable may also be an advantage from another perspective, while the environment you think is favorable may also be an advantage from another perspective. China has the most fertile plain in the world: Yellow River , Yangtze River impacted by North China Plain , Middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River , and agricultural civilization was born very early. Therefore, China is known as the four ancient civilizations together with , ancient Egypt, , ancient Babylon and ancient India. The other three ancient civilizations also developed based on the agricultural civilization that was hit by the impact of the plains by rivers.
This land formed by Chinese civilization has three most typical characteristics compared with the other three ancient civilizations: the most closed, the most extensive, and the most difficult. To the west and southwest of China are a series of the highest mountain ranges in the world; to the east are the vast Pacific Ocean; to the north and northwest are deserts and prairies. Therefore, Chinese civilization actually developed in a relatively closed environment. In contrast, the other three ancient civilizations are geographically connected. Middle East The Mesohe River Basin is located on a major transportation road and has no dangers around it. Therefore, it has been conquered by different forces such as Persians , Macedonians , Arabs and other forces.
Egypt connected to West Asia through Sinai Peninsula is also without any danger. Therefore, once the empires such as the rise of West Asia, such as Persian , Arabia, and Ottoman will usually destroy Egypt. In fact, today's Egypt has long been an Arab country that believes in Islam . Today's Egyptians are not direct descendants of the ancient Egyptians who built pyramids. India's geographical environment is more closed than Egypt and the Middle East: India's east, south and west directions are surrounded by the sea, while the north is the towering Himalayas .
conquering India from the sea before the arrival of the Age of Discovery, and it is also impossible to conquer India across the Himalayas. But the seemingly closed Indian subcontinent has the gap of Khyber Pass in the northwest.Historically, Persians, Macedonians, Great Yuezhi, Huns, Arabs, Turkic - Mongol invaded India one after another through the Khyber Pass. In contrast, it is the geographical closure that provides invisible protection for the independent development of Chinese civilization. In addition to the prominent feature of closedness, China's geographical environment also has another characteristic, which is its vastness.
China has natural geographical barriers in all directions, south, west and north, but there is a vast hinterland inside this enclosed space. Our ancestors developed from the Yellow River Basin to the Yangtze River Basin, and then developed all the way from the Yangtze River Basin to the Pearl River Basin. There are various geographical and ecological environments in this wide area. A large land and abundant resources mean that it can support a relatively larger population. During the Western Han Dynasty, China's population exceeded 50 million. You should know that there are only 28 of the nearly 200 countries around the world with a population of more than 50 million. This shows that China has laid the foundation for its mass as a major power very early on.
In addition to the most closed and vast, China's geographical environment is also the most difficult. Although China has a large number of fertile plains suitable for farming, China is located at the intersection of the natural disaster belt in the northern hemisphere and the Pacific natural disaster belt. More than 80% of natural disasters in the 20th century occurred in these two areas. China, which is at the intersection of these two major disaster zones, is the country with the highest and most severe natural disasters in the world. This is of course a major disadvantage of China's geographical environment, but it is this disadvantage that trains the Chinese people to face complex and changeable natural disasters.
A history in China is, in a sense, a history of constantly fighting against natural disasters. China's transition from primitive tribal form to state power form began with the control of floods. From 602 BC to 1938 AD, the mother river of the Yellow River, the Chinese nation, broke 1,590 times and changed course 26 times. On average, the Yellow River will undergo a major diversion every 100 years or so, and almost every diversion will cause a huge disaster. Our ancestors developed a strong sense of crisis in the fight against natural disasters. This may explain the different reactions of Chinese and Westerners when they face the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Chinese nation has learned a long time ago how to unite and organize together to overcome difficulties. Europe, which is comparable to China's area, has always been in a state of small countries, but China has been able to maintain a unified morphological structure for thousands of years. The root cause of this difference between the East and the West may also be traced back to differences in geographical environments. In addition to its vast land territory, China also has 3 million square kilometers of territorial sea and an exclusive economic zone of about 1.73 million square kilometers. Therefore, our country is geographically a typical country with both sea and land.
Russia and Canada are mostly in the cold zone , while most parts of my country are in the temperate and subtropical zones. In contrast, the natural environment of the United States is more similar to that of our country: China and the United States have roughly the same territorial areas and roughly the same climatic conditions. Of course, as a two-sided country, the United States has inherent advantages over us in participating in global trade and international affairs through the ocean. What's more, there are three island chains set up by the United States in the ocean direction east of China, so my country has long been unsatisfactory in terms of sea conditions. A prominent shortcoming in this regard is the excessive dependence on , Malacca Strait, in terms of energy security.
However, the United States, which has strong maritime power, has some shortcomings in land rights. The United States has only two land neighbors, Canada and Mexico, so it cannot use the right to road to gain greater benefits in international exchanges. Mainland China has a coastline of 18,000 kilometers, and China also has a coastline of 14,000 kilometers. Therefore, we do not lack natural ports with great economic and military significance. The problem is that most of our waters are inland seas that are easily blocked and contained, but this problem is not unsolvable for us, not to mention that our advantages in land rights can make up for the shortcomings in sea rights to a certain extent.
my country borders 14 countries on land.We need to look at this dialectically: more neighbors may sometimes cause some trouble. In addition to possible border territorial disputes with neighboring countries, there may also be separatist and terrorist forces at the border that pose a threat to our country and neighboring countries. However, from another perspective, we can also shape our international image and enhance our influence in international affairs by developing relations with our neighbors. If the United States establishes its position in the world more through maritime power advantages, then China has the most conditions to become a composite sea and land power.
My Belt and Road Initiative proposed by my country promotes common prosperity through cooperation with neighboring countries in all aspects such as politics, economy, security, environmental protection, and culture. In this process, our country will inevitably increase its influence and voice in the world. The so-called "Belt" refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt. This means that our country has transported national power to the outside world through land power. The so-called "One Road" refers to the Maritime Silk Road of the 21st Century. This represents our country's participation in international affairs through maritime power. There is no absolute good or bad geographical environment. It all depends on how we play to our strengths and avoid our weaknesses.
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