Question:

It was mentioned in an Answer to a Question, dated 12/04/2014: "China possesses a sense of strength and challenge, and if China's objective is not limited only to maintain its territory, and accept to confront America only as a response to the movements of America towards its territory, China does not venture out to challenge America in their respective areas of influence... and if it did not begin to adopt capitalism in many areas, particularly in economy... it would have had a loud voice internationally, and its impact on the interests of America's would be most powerful. China in any case has a strong sense of force, and is working to maintain its region's self-sovereignty, even if in its own territory.…" — So, isn’t China’s restriction of rare earth elements exports to America, selling them U.S. Treasury bonds, modernizing its army, and building the largest military complex in the world southwest of Beijing… isn’t this an indicator of China’s liberation from its political view confined to its region and the expansion of this view to compete with America globally? May Allah reward you well.

Answer:

To clarify the answer, it is necessary to review the following matters:

1- The People’s Republic of China was established in 1949 by Mao’s victory after the conflict between the Communist Party led by Mao and the Nationalist Party led by Chiang Kai-shek, which was openly supported by the United States. The Nationalist Party led by Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan and declared it the "Republic of China." When Deng Xiaoping assumed the presidency of the Chinese Communist Party in 1978, unlike Mao, he prioritized the economy over ideology. He created an economic model based on low wages and high exports, opened the doors to foreign investors, and then established Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in eastern Chinese cities in 1979.

2- Under Deng, China abandoned the communist ideology in the economy and foreign policy, etc., and began to mix capitalism and communism in practice! Since 1980, over a period of 45 years, it achieved extremely rapid economic growth and continues to grow. From 2010 onwards, it became the second-largest economy in the world after the U.S., and continues on this path. “China stands a good chance of doubling the size of its economy by 2035 — and surpassing the U.S. as the world’s largest economy along the way, said an economist from the Bank of America.” (CNBC; CBC Arabia, 27/2/2021). This is the situation economically.

3- Militarily, China is on the path of converting this economic power into military power; it increases its military expenditures every year. "Today, Wednesday, China announced that it intends to increase the national defense budget for 2025 by 7.2%, representing the tenth consecutive year of single-digit growth in the defense budget. The planned defense spending will be 1.784665 trillion yuan [about 249 billion U.S. dollars] this year…” (Alarabiya News, 05/03/2025). Furthermore, the capabilities of the Chinese conventional and nuclear army are also developing; a report from the U.S. Department of Defense to Congress stated that by mid-2024, “the PRC has surpassed 600 operational nuclear warheads in its stockpile as of mid-2024 and will have over 1,000 operational nuclear warheads by 2030, much of which will be deployed at higher readiness levels.” (media.defense.gov; RT, 18/12/2024), and China displayed its advanced weapons in a military parade on 3/9/2025 to commemorate the eightieth anniversary of victory over Japan in World War II. The development of China’s military weapons was observed.

4- Politically, China is an independent major regional state that does not orbit around the U.S., unlike regional countries such as Japan and South Korea. It has political ambitions in the region, driven by nationalistic motives and economic interests, even if not ideological. The South China Sea is of vital importance to China; it contains important maritime routes, fishing areas, and offshore oil and gas reserves essential to feed the manufacturing sector and the continually growing Chinese economy. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration report of 2013, it is estimated that there are “the South China Sea has about 11 billion barrels of oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas rated as proved or probable reserves" in its seabed reserves. (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 13/04/2013). Furthermore, more than 80% of global trade passes through the South China Sea, estimated at about $5.3 trillion of traded goods (China Power, 2016). Therefore, China has an interest in this geostrategic region and claims rights in it.

5- The U.S., acting as the world’s policeman, and according to its Asian strategy, sought to prevent China’s rise and contain it; sometimes by transferring troops and equipment from Europe to the Pacific, sometimes by exploiting the Taiwan crisis, sometimes using India, sometimes establishing military alliances with regional countries such as AUKUS (Australia, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.) and QUAD (U.S., Australia, India, Japan), and sometimes waging trade wars on Chinese companies like Huawei. After the fall of the Soviet Union, America placed Islam as an ideological enemy and China as a state enemy at the top of its list of adversaries. While the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan delayed and slowed its confrontation with China, after these wars, its full focus shifted to China, especially trade wars.

6- After this clarification, we now review the answer to the question:

a- Regarding the export of rare earth elements: China recognizes their importance, especially in modern, high-tech industries; there are about 17 types used in more than 200 modern industries worldwide. They are required for military industries in planes, submarines, spacecraft, and drones. A high percentage of them are mined in China. China used these metals as a weapon against America to gain concessions in the trade war. This occurred when Trump announced gradually increasing tariffs on China to finally reach 104% on April 8, 2025. China reacted by announcing on October 9, 2025, restrictions on rare earth elements exports to America. China holds 49% of the global rare earth reserves and accounts for 69% of annual global production. That is, action and reaction occurred repeatedly, with tariffs eventually reduced to about 47%. Trump later stated after his meeting with the Chinese president in Busan, South Korea, on October 30, 2025, during the 32nd APEC Economic Cooperation Forum: "The tariffs imposed by the U.S. on China will be reduced to 47%… all issues related to rare earths have been resolved, and the agreement will continue for one year with the possibility of extension" (Reuters; Al-Sharq Al-Awsat; Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, 30/10/2025). Thus, China’s restriction on rare earths does not indicate liberation from narrow vision, but is a "reaction" to America’s decision,essentially a bargaining tool. Reality confirms this; tariffs were reduced and rare earth elements restrictions suspended for a year.

b- Regarding China selling part of the U.S. Treasury bonds it held: which amounted to $1.189 trillion in October 2017; “China’s holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds dropped to their lowest level since 2009… data released by the U.S. Treasury on Tuesday showed that the value of U.S. sovereign debt held by Chinese investors decreased by $57 billion to $759 billion in 2024, not including Treasury bonds owned by Chinese held in accounts in other countries.” (Al Jazeera Net, 19/02/2025), this decision was taken as a defensive step to reduce risks rather than arising from a principled (ideological) view. After Russia’s war on Ukraine in 2022, America and Europe froze Russian assets worth $300 billion and used the SWIFT system as a weapon. Therefore, China likely converted these bonds into gold reserves to prevent America from freezing its assets as it did with Russia, in case of an attack on Taiwan or other reasons like trade wars. “Last year alone, China added several tons of gold worth $550 billion to its reserves. Last month, the share of gold in China’s official reserves rose to the highest level in history at 4.9%..." (Artigercek.com, 18/05/2024). The claim that the decline in China’s assets is due to transferring some to institutions like Euroclear in Belgium and Clearstream in Luxembourg, as some experts suggest, is unlikely; because in this case, the assets moved out of America to Belgium and Luxembourg could still be frozen under U.S. pressure. Therefore, gold is the safest refuge. This step, like rare earth elements, is a "precautionary measure"—China’s actions are reactions to U.S. actions.

c- Regarding China’s army modernization and construction of the largest military complex southwest of Beijing: “The Chinese military has reaffirmed its commitment to achieving its centenary goals for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in 2027, pledging to accelerate modernization and enhance combat readiness. Wu Qian, spokesperson for the delegation of the PLA and the People’s Armed Police Force, emphasized that reaching the centenary objectives and advancing military capabilities are “strategic imperatives” in China’s broader efforts to modernize its national defense. “We must dedicate our efforts to ensuring that we achieve our goals with strong performance on schedule,” Wu stated.” (Defence-blog; Defense-arabic.com, 13/03/2025). “Financial Times reported China’s military is building a massive complex in western Beijing that US intelligence believes will serve as a wartime command centre far larger than the Pentagon, according to current and former American officials. Satellite images obtained by the Financial Times that are being examined by US intelligence show a roughly 1,500-acre construction site 30km south-west of Beijing with deep holes that military experts assess will house large, hardened bunkers to protect Chinese military leaders during any conflict — including potentially a nuclear war.” (Financial Times, 30/1/2025; Al Jazeera Net, 31/01/2025). Thus, army modernization and building this command center, constructing artificial islands in the South China Sea, or rapidly expanding the naval fleet, are all "reactions" to America’s deployment of 60% of its naval fleet in the region. It is not meant to enter into conflict with America in its colonies or replace it, unlike the U.S. replacing Britain post-WWII. These actions aim to prevent American hegemony over China’s regional area—China is content with preserving its territory—essentially a reaction to military concentrations in the region.

7- In conclusion, China now has the material capabilities to be a major global power, but so far it has not dared to compete with America in its areas of influence or elsewhere. Therefore, it has not forcibly annexed Taiwan as it had planned and threatened, after seeing the sanctions imposed by America and Western countries on Russia since 2022. It does not challenge America in its zones of influence in Africa, Asia, etc., has scaled back plans for extended military bases from its coasts to the Pacific, Indian Ocean, and Africa, keeping only one base in Djibouti. It has not taken a firm stance against U.S. threats to its interests in Panama, where Panama succumbed to threats and withdrew from the new Silk Road agreement on 6/2/2025, which included Chinese oversight of the Panama Canal. China merely reacts to U.S. movements nearby without initiating. Therefore, our previous answer remains valid: China shows regional presence and competes locally but not globally with America—though this may change if new political and ideological developments drive China toward serious global political engagement, especially as it progresses militarily and economically.

8- Finally, whether these countries are America, China, or both, they compete in this world with no good but only evil surrounding them and their followers, and a false civilization whose people have not succeeded. What appears today as their elevation on earth is due to the absence of a state that spreads goodness globally, suppressing their evils and destroying their structures. That state will return, by Allah’s permission: the Khilafah Rashidah (Rightly Guided Caliphate), which will remove them as it removed their predecessors—the Persians and Romans. The Islamic Ummah is a living, active nation, moving swiftly to its original path granted by Allah:

[كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ]

"You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah" [Aal-i Imran:110].

Indeed, within the Ummah is a party loyal to Allah, truthful to His Messenger (swt), maintaining the path, day and night, until Allah’s promise and His Messenger’s good tidings are realized through them, fearing no reproach in Allah. Their resolve will not falter, and their determination will not weaken, until Allah’s promise is fulfilled through them, and the Khilafah Rashidah (Rightly Guided Caliphate) returns, opening Rome by the hands of Muslims as Constantinople was opened. Ahmad narrated in his Musnad on the authority of Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As, who said: While we were around the Messenger of Allah (saw) writing, he was asked: "Which of the two cities will be conquered first: Constantinople or Rome?" The Messenger of Allah saw) said: »مَدِينَةُ هِرَقْلَ تُفْتَحُ أَوَّلاً يَعْنِي قُسْطَنْطِينِيَّةَ«“The city of Heraclius will be conquered first, meaning Constantinople.”

[وَيَوْمَئِذٍ يَفْرَحُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ * بِنَصْرِ اللَّهِ يَنْصُرُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الرَّحِيمُ]

“And that Day the believers will rejoice. In the victory of Allah. He gives victory to whom He wills, and He is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful” [Ar-Rum:4-5]