China is misreading Western populism

THE ERA of populist politics in the rich world is hard work for China. Its leaders generally dislike change in foreign capitals, preferring to deal with old friends or devils they know. Young leaders, in particular, can be bumptious, and in need of training in how to avoid annoying China. On the upside, turmoil in Western capitals offers new ways to put foreigners in their place. A European envoy in Beijing describes how Chinese officials greet visitors who raise such issues as the rule of law or political freedoms. Rather often, he reports, Chinese hosts cite the financial crisis that gripped Europe and America in 2008 (but which largely spared China) and the rise of populist parties. “They say: ‘We have been using our system for millennia, and your system doesn’t work.’”

Delightful though it is to gloat, on balance China is getting this populist moment wrong. Chinese leaders are too cynical about elections in the democratic West, and about the lessons that even messy campaigns can offer. They are not cynical enough about their own authoritarian system, refusing to see how it induces a sort of democracy-blindness. Even well-informed officials and scholars misread political dynamics around the world.