After Mr Hu, Mr Xi

In contrast with the current Chairman Hu Jintao, Mr Xi has a more integrated political-military resume. Mr Hu's forte is in engineering and indeed social-economic engineering on a grand scale, a fact which has made the current Chairman and Premier Wen Jiabo a very good combination, as Wen also has a strong engineering background. I will provide details of the expected next Prime Minister at a later time.

The Chinese system has placed Mr Xi as Mr Hu's deputy for a few years now so even though they have different approaches to the market and to a range of ideological issues, they have worked very well as a team already in overseeing the massive developments of their nation. Mr Xi's elevation does signal a more assertive China in terms of politcal and military presence in the future especially in North Asia. Meanwhile the extensive Chinese investment inter-linking with SE Asian countries continues at a very rapid pace in terms of provision of high speed rail infrastructure; functionally integrating all land-linked SE Asian countries to particular China cities of rising economic growth.

Mr Hu has done an outstanding job in presiding over and directing the current China Flow and has done this with the assistance of Mr Xi for some years so the handover of real power should be a very smooth, and profoundly secure one. I'm guessing, but I presume it means a slight move for China to the Right in terms of Neo-Confucian directions for the future; some more flexibility with a range of individual and religious freedoms (for belief systems with core Confucian, or at least integrative Chinese ethical elements) whilst at the same time a significant bolstering of China's military defence capacity far beyond even recent investments in the 'whole brand new navy' etc currently underway.

It makes sense. North Asia is the most 'tectonic' place in the world terms of a potential international military conflagration and a far more assertive China should not only counter any potential for future chaos, it will in fact pre-emptively bring security and abiding peace and growth in the region even if instability and chaos is better for American interests there.

The future, at first for Asia, is not about American or European Globalism, or communism or capitalism, per se. It's all really about Neo-Confucianism rising. This will benefit China and do no harm to others, and all of Asia will benefit; as is The Way of China.