Trump took to his favourite social media platform yesterday to congratulate China President Xi Jinping on his re-election victory.
China unveiled its new generation leader without a clear successor giving edge to the Communist Party leader ironclad grip on power. Although Trump’s message was polite enough, but it is a pattern of congratulating authoritarian leaders simply because it gives him joy to see his kind in power too. Xi has been referred to as China ‘COE’ (Chairman Of Everything) and seen as the most powerful Chinese leader in decades as he controls power over 1.4 billion people and the world’s second largest economy.
Xi Jiping’s power status has been measured with that of Mao Zedong, founder of modern china. Xi has vowed to spearhead the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” as he rules for another five years. Speculations around the streets of China has ti that Xi wants to amend the constitution so as to extend his tenure beyond 2022.
For now, Xi will rule with six other members of the new Communist Party Politburo Standing Committee, all hand-picked by his loyalists. As NBC News concludes in an analysis, this sends a clear signal that China “may be entering an era of strongman rule.” Trump’s joy for Xi’s victory might be alarming but not surprising.
Trump is known to be cordial with authoritarian leaders and this shows in his comment and justification of bizzare comments and actions by these leaders. Trump has supported Rodrigo Duterte an admitted killer who encouraged citizens to gun down drug dealers in the street, which will lead to mass extrajudicial killings.
The U.S President justified Russian President actions once with an awkward statement. He said “If he has nice things to say about me, I will say nice things about him too”. Trump once said he and Egyptian President, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi ‘Agree on so many things’. Trump told the leadder in April that he did a fantastic job in a difficult situation when the Egyptian security force were accused of an ongoing human right violation which includes the use of torture.
It was only President Trump that congratulated Turkish President, Tayyip Erdogan for winning a widely disputed referendum in April which led to the cementing of the leader’s despotic rule. Trumps simply likes them to be him. If one-quarter of the world is being ruled by authoritarians, it means Trump is getting what he wants at our detriment, because it affects a lot of how the world will be seen.
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