This article was written by IWP alumnus David Stoffey.
If there is a norm in Chinese succession, it’s that nearly every paramount leader strove to retain power indefinitely, with most failing.
The U.S. State Department’s Policy Planning Staff recently released a long report on China. Likened to George Kennan’s 1946 “Long Telegram,” the report spells out Foggy Bottom’s foreign policy prescriptions to a continually rising China. Deep in the report, however, lies a misconception that has been loudly echoed by China Watchers since China’s 19th Party Congress in 2018.