In a speech delivered in 2014, Chinese leader Xi Jinping said, “Efforts should be made to build our country into a cyber power.” Under national strategies such as Building Digital China, the Digital Silk Road, and China Standards 2035, Beijing seeks not only the digital transformation of the nation but also aspires to play a leading role in the global digital order. How should we understand Beijing’s ambition to become a cyber superpower and have digital sovereignty? What is China’s role in the global digital space today and how do Chinese digital platforms advance China’s influence? To discuss these questions, host Bonnie Glaser is joined by Peter Raymond, a nonresident senior associate with the economics program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He has a 30-year career of service at the intersection of the public and private sectors of infrastructure and financial services. He is author of a recently released CSIS report titled, “Re-platformed Planet? Implications of the Rise and Spread of Chinese Platform Technologies.”
Timestamps
[01:30] Sinocentric Order in the Digital Sphere
[06:51] China’s Digital Silk Road
[09:35] Global Rise of Chinese Digital Platforms
[11:57] The Strength of Chinese Digital Platforms
[14:04] The Digital Sector and Government Partnership
[16:53] Dominance of Western Digital Platforms
[19:08] Pros and Cons of Banning TikTok
[21:08] Chinese Crackdown of the Digital Sector
[23:27] Looking Forward in the Digital Space