Asians see the United States losing its undisputed
international influence in 50 years to possibly China amid waning trust in
Washington to act responsibly in the world, a poll showed.
The study is carried out by the Chicago Council on
Global Affairs (CCGA), an independent US think tank.
In the immediate term, US power in the eyes of Asians remains secure.
In half a century, however, a majority in all countries covered by the
poll -- China, India, South Korea and the United States -- believed
"another nation" will become as powerful or surpass the United States in
power.
"There is a clear agreement across the board that over the next half
century Asians see the United States no more the sole superpower that it
is or considered to be today," CCGA president Marshall Bouton told a news
conference in Washington.
The survey did not specify in its questions which nation people believe
will match or overtake the United States.
"We can only infer what nation people had in mind when they answered
that question," Bouton said. When asked whether it was China, he said "I
guess so."
China has become a global manufacturing power and is already displacing
the United States as the primary trading partner for many nations.
China has also amassed the world's largest trade surplus and world's
largest foreign exchange reserves.
Asians, according to the survey, were quite comfortable with the rise
of China.
Trust in the United States to act responsibly in the world is "low,"
according to the poll.
(Agencies)
