How China Sees The World

Under an assertive new ruler, Beijing wants to be treated like a world power. But many of Xi Jinping's own people are not so sure about his China Dream

Photograph by Mark Seliger for TIME. Art by Ai Weiwei for TIME. Typography by Post Typography

Liu mingfu likes to think he is the oracle of a new era. A retired colonel with the ramrod bearing of a career soldier, he has never been to the U.S. but is a self-proclaimed expert on Sino-American relations: he lectured on the subject at the National Defense University in Beijing, the training ground for the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Three years ago, Liu wrote a best-selling book called China Dream: Great Power Thinking and Strategic Positioning of China in the Post-American Age. In his hawkish tome, Liu explained that China needed a strong, martial leader and offered advice for his...

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