Who said last year that the biggest source of chaos in the present-day world is the US?

Not the leader of Russia. Not of North Korea. Not even of Iran.

It was Xi Jinping, who believes America poses a major risk for China.

The US feels the same about China. And while the two probably won't go to war anytime soon, ties remain tense. What's more, China has become so powerful that its political system is now accepted by all.

While China’s economic growth has been impressive, even during COVID, the pandemic has widened inequality and political divisions in the US. For Beijing, it's a sign that the East is rising as the West declines. Is it? Ian Bremmer takes a look.

Watch the GZERO World episode: Does China's rise have to mean America's decline?

More For You

Viktor Orban and Peter Magyar
Miguel Saenz-Flores

For sixteen years, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has won every fight: four consecutive parliamentary supermajorities for his party, Fidesz; a constitution rewritten to his specifications; courts, media, and oligarchs brought to heel.

The United States President Donald Trump holds a Press Conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on April 6, 2026 in Washington DC.
Photo by Chen Mengtong/China News Service/VCG

Over the last two days, US President Donald Trump has made many threats against Iran.