China’s Global Standing: Diplomacy, Trade and Shifting Views
China’s position on the world stage has been underscored by three significant developments this week: President Xi Jinping’s high-level meeting with Kazakhstan’s leader at a major AI conference in Shanghai, Beijing’s forceful condemnation of the UK’s nationalization of a Chinese-owned steel company, and a landmark Pew Research Center survey showing global public favorability toward China surpassing that of the United States for the first time in roughly two decades.
Together, these events paint a complex picture of a nation deepening its diplomatic and economic ties while navigating heightened tensions with Western powers — and increasingly winning the battle for global public opinion.
Xi and Tokayev Strengthen Bilateral Ties in Shanghai
On July 16, President Xi Jinping met with Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at the Shanghai Xijiao State Guesthouse, on the sidelines of the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC). The meeting, reported by Xinhua News, reinforced the permanent comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations.
Xi emphasized that China-Kazakhstan relations have grown stronger through trials and called for deepening development strategy alignment, expanding trade in e-commerce and services, enhancing energy and mineral cooperation, and launching a “China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange Year.” He also expressed willingness to coordinate within the United Nations, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the China-Central Asia mechanism.
Tokayev, in Shanghai to attend WAIC, stated that Kazakhstan regards relations with China as the primary direction of its foreign policy and fully agreed with Xi’s proposals. Following the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents in the fields of economy, trade, transportation, finance, and media.
The meeting came just as Xi delivered his first-ever keynote address at WAIC, emphasizing China’s commitment to open-source AI and international collaboration. His speech stood in stark contrast to a prime-time address by US President Donald Trump the previous day, in which Trump accused Beijing of orchestrating “the largest compromise of election data in history” — underscoring escalating US-China tensions.
Beijing Condemns UK Nationalization of British Steel
In a sharply different diplomatic context, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued a forceful statement on July 17 opposing the UK government’s decision to nationalize British Steel, which had been owned by China’s Jingye Group since 2020.
According to Xinhua News, the ministry’s spokesperson stated that the UK “disregarded Jingye Group’s important contributions to the British economy and society” and “forcibly took control of British Steel and subsequently nationalized the company in the name of national security.” The spokesperson noted that British Steel had been loss-making for years before Jingye’s acquisition and that Jingye had injected substantial funds to sustain operations and preserve approximately 2,700 jobs.
The ministry said the action “seriously damaged Jingye’s legitimate rights and interests” and “severely undermined Chinese companies’ confidence in investing in the UK.” As Al Jazeera reported, the UK government passed legislation on July 16 to bring the Scunthorpe steelworks — the UK’s only source of primary steelmaking — under public ownership, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling it a move to “secure the future of steelmaking in the UK.”
China urged the UK to abide by international rules and fulfill obligations under the China-UK bilateral investment treaty, warning that it would “take strong measures to firmly protect the interests of Chinese companies.”
Pew Survey: Global Favorability Shifts Toward China
Amid these diplomatic and trade developments, the Pew Research Center released a survey on July 15-16 showing a historic shift in global public opinion. According to Xinhua, the survey of 42,151 adults across 36 countries found that in 27 of those countries, more people held a favorable view of China than of the United States.
The median favorability toward China stood at 46 percent, compared to 36 percent for the US — the first time in roughly 20 years of Pew tracking that China has been viewed more positively than America. Countries viewing China more favorably included longtime US allies such as Britain, Canada, France, and Germany. Only six countries viewed the US more favorably, including India, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea.
Laura Silver, associate director of Pew’s Global Attitudes Research, told the Associated Press that “some of the views that we see of the US are at or near historic lows.” Sun Xihui, an associate research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, attributed the shift to China’s consistent foreign policy anchored in non-interference and win-win collaboration, noting that middle-income nations increasingly rely on affordable, quality goods that China provides.
Analysis: A Three-Dimensional Picture of Rising Influence
The three stories, while distinct, share a common thread: China is asserting itself across multiple dimensions of global power. Diplomatically, Xi’s meeting with Tokayev and the landmark WAIC address demonstrate China’s active engagement in shaping global governance, particularly in emerging technology sectors. On trade and investment, the British Steel dispute highlights the friction that arises as Chinese companies expand globally and encounter national security concerns from Western governments. And on the soft power front, the Pew survey suggests that China’s message of non-interference and economic partnership is resonating in ways that challenge US influence.
What to Watch For
The coming weeks will reveal how the UK-Jingye compensation dispute unfolds and whether China follows through on its threat of “strong measures.” The trajectory of US-China relations, already strained by Trump’s accusations and Xi’s counter-narrative at WAIC, will be a critical factor in whether the favorable trends in global opinion toward China continue. Meanwhile, the cooperation agreements signed between China and Kazakhstan signal deepening ties in Central Asia — a region of growing strategic importance.