For several decades Chinese ascendancy has been supported by an astonishingly broad and deep portfolio of soft power. The stories of their reach are breathtaking - Chinese-sponsored reporting in national newspapers and academia; the gagging of sports stars and huge Western brands; Hollywood self-censorship; and of course - communications firms. But these are just the most visible examples.
Beijing Rules exposes the armoury of strategies with which China has exploited Western weakness to position itself as leader in the game of nations: authoritarian economic statecraft; internationally harmful tariffs; online disinformation operations; use of private companies to spy on global users; leverage of vaccines; and the crushing of democracy in Hong Kong. With these weapons and dextrous manoeuvrings during the global pandemic, China has now positioned itself to take its place at the apex of world powers.
Bethany Allen, an internationally recognized investigator into Chinese covert power, shows Western institutions have bowed to and even enabled Beijing's coercion. As we come reeling out of a global pandemic and eyes are on a new war in Europe, this revealing analysis sounds the alarm about the most significant shift in the new world order, and what we must do to prevent the loss of freedoms we take for granted.
