Week 6 Bin Xiao

When it comes to states, there are always certain aspects of power, which must be implemented for them to rise. The reason behind this, is because if a part of the world, is going to have control, then there needs to a specific and efficient type of balance.  A strong example of this is China.  This is a part of the world, that is known for its powerful influence in the world and charisma in drawing in the masses. As said in “Is China the World’s New Colonial Power”, while China is a portion of the world that is very powerful and able to influence other countries, this type of respect and power had to be earned over time (Larmer 1).    Now, an important question to ask here is as follows; when can soft power become harmful to targets of interest?

       Soft power becomes dangerous, when it is not used correctly.  In other words, parts of the world that are growing in power, need to learn how to use the current soft power that they have, to gain the trust of others.  However, this must be done efficiently and effectively.  Otherwise, part of the world that are learning to gain trust, will lose that trust.  What this means, is that soft power should not be abused.  For example; let’s say that when China had soft power instead of the influence and charisma is has as of now, they were very shady about their financial deals, with other parts of the world.  This not only would have been an abuse of power.  However, there would have been consequences that came with these actions as well.  One of them, would have been the fact that parts of the that thought about doing business with China, would have called it quits.  Factors such as these are important to keep in mind.  At the same time, though, there needs to be a balance of power, and some fear that China may be pushing their agendas too much.  As states in “Chinese Military Power”, “The rise of China has long been a growing concern among U.S. foreign policymakers. Of particular concern is the strength of Chinese military power and its relation to U.S. military capability” (“Chinese Military Power”).  Now, a question to take away from this is as follows.  In what ways does China’s growing power continue to be a threat to the world?

Work Cited

“Chinese Military Power”.  Council on Foreign Relations. Web.  Retrieved 07 November 2017.

Larmer, Brook. “Is China the World’s New Colonial Power?”  New York Times.  Web. 02 May 2017.  Retrieved 04 November 2017.

Youtube. “The Power of CHINA: 'Big Numbers' (2014)”.  2014.  Online video clip.