Jianxi ‘19 (Liu Jianxi, political researcher, conducted several studies on US-Sino Politics "What's behind China's rising global leadership approval," No Publication, 03-15-2019, https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d774d35597a4d33457a6333566d54/index.html)(Shiv)
China's leadership image was steadily improvingin recent years, which, according to Gallup, could have implications for soft power. Economic growth and diplomatic achievements are major reasons for China's 34 percent figure. For decades, China has been one of the world's fastest-growing economies. Despite reducing the economic growth target to 6-6.5 percent in 2019, China will still be the top contributor to global GDP growth, Bloomberg reported. Economic rise lays the groundwork for international influence. Since China has been locked in a trade conflict with the United States, a number of reputable financial organizations have released reports warning its impacts on the world economy. This is strong evidence for China's growing influence on the global arena. China's "major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics" is another contributor to its rising soft power. Under the guidance of the "thought on the diplomacy of socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era," China is playing a leading role in maintaining multilateral mechanisms and has proposed a series of multi-win proposals, including the Belt and Road Initiative. The international community is gradually recognizing China's efforts. The United States, on the contrary, is seeing declining soft power since the Iraq war and the financial crisis. Donald Trump's governance has accelerated such a slide. The president's “America First” doctrine is pursuing America's interests at the cost of other countries' benefits. This is suicidal to its soft power and, therefore, its plummeting global leadership approval is within expectation. China's rising soft power is an encouraging outcome from decades of efforts. To further enhance its soft power and improve its leadership image, China should put more efforts in stimulating its economic growth and maintaining multilateral mechanisms. After all, global integration, rather than protectionism, is the dominant theme of the 21st century.
