The OECD in a recent report indicated that by 2016, China will surpass the United States as the world's preeminent economy. This is no surprising, considering that for the past 40 years, China has been growing at more than 7% per year. 2016 is the year the dragon will finally come to roost. The bigger question is what does China want when it will, for all intents and purposes, finally be the world's number 1 economy? China's recent spats with its Asian neighbors has clearly demonstrated that like past empires and civilizations, it will flex its muscles, it will step where it wants, when it wants and however it wants. The only thing that smaller nations will have to do is to be constructive and creative in their responses. The Philippines is one such nation, of course, the country can never really confront a megalith like China, even now. It is simply too powerful, too large and too ambitious.
The Philippine government must be resourceful and adroit therefore, in defending and safeguarding its interests, especially its territorial integrity. The country might be small, weak and fragmented, but there is one thing I have always admired about us Filipinos, we are the perennial 'can do' guys. If we really want it, really crave it, really desire it, we have always, and always, against all odds, been able to accomplish what needs to be done.
China will ever more become enmeshed and entwined with the rest of the world. Even now, China produces almost every consumer goods sold in all countries. In fact, 75% of all the toys produced in the world today are made in China. The world will do well to welcome with prudence once again the rise to top of China, the incidentally also the world's longest continuing civilization.
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