The East is rising and the West is declining (Chinese:东升西降;pinyin:Dōngshēng Xījiàng) is a term in Chinese political rhetoric which refers to geopolitical shifts in which theEastern civilization, represented by thePeople's Republic of China, is rising and will gradually replace the decliningWestern civilization represented by theUnited States. The concept was introduced byXi Jinping, thegeneral secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), in 2020.
Xi first said the phrase in October 2020, during the fifth plenary session of the19th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, while his remarks were first revealed publicly in January 2021.[1][2][3] Xi said China was entering a period of opportunity because "the East is rising and the West is declining". He also called said the "biggest source of chaos in the present-day world is the United States". However, Xi also warned that despite China's rise, there were still many ways where "the West is strong and the East is weak".[4] Following Xi's comments, the phrase was also used by other CCP officials.[5]
