Leaders of the G7 in Cornwall, England, this past June. Credit: Simon Dawson/No. 10 Downing Street/Flickr
At the G7 summit of industrialized countries in June, the headline deliverable was an agreement to develop a shared approach to China. This was supposed to be operationalized through a new global development program, awkwardly dubbed “Build Back Better World” (B3W), to rival China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI).
But reports of Western unity are exaggerated, and the shows of unity strain credibility. There is no evidence that B3W is anything more than a slogan. German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s farewell visit to Washington last month failed to produce any meaningful agreement on it — or even a statement of shared principles on a common China policy. Despite the Biden administration’s rhetorical focus on alliances, European states see a common interest in avoiding having to take sides in “Cold War II.” The chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan, which the EU opposed, has only highlighted the rift. As a result, despite their internal disagreements, t
Exclusive longform investigative journalism, Q&As, news and analysis, and data on Chinese business elites and corporations. We publish China scoops you won't find anywhere else.
A weekly curated reading list on China from David Barboza, Pulitzer Prize-winning former Shanghai correspondent for The New York Times.
A daily roundup of China finance, business and economics headlines.
We offer discounts for groups, institutions and students. Go to our Subscriptions page for details.
When Ken Wilcox, a former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, moved to Shanghai in 2011, he was optimistic and eager to start up the bank's new joint venture in China. A decade later, however, he is extremely cynical about U.S. business interests in China. While analysts will, rightly, be debating SVB's missteps in the U.S. for the foreseeable future, Wilcox insists the bank's challenges in China should not be overlooked.
The former secretary of state talks about how the Trump administration changed U.S.-China relations; why he accused Beijing of genocide in Xinjiang; and why U.S. politicians should visit Taiwan.
