Deng Xiaoping

Source date: 4 March 1985. Conversation with a delegation from the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Editorial overview.

Deng distinguishes the security problem associated with East-West relations from the development problem associated with North-South relations. He argues that the opportunities for preventing a world war have improved, while the development divide remains fundamental.

He presents China's growth as beneficial to peace and to international markets. His economic argument is that developed economies cannot indefinitely expand while most of humanity remains poor. A more prosperous China would create demand as well as competition.

This text helps explain why international stability and economic opening belong together in his strategic outlook. It is also an argument addressed to potential economic partners. The claim that a stronger China necessarily supports peace is Deng's position, rather than a conclusion established by the speech itself.

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