At the conference "Prospects for the Integration of Civilian Technology into Military Space" held in San Francisco in early 2020, Musk, a giant with civilian rocket construction capabilities, naturally attended the meeting.
In the middle of the meeting, American General John Thompson suddenly asked Musk, the richest man in the world, a question for Musk: "How do you think the United States can defeat China?" ”
Musk's answer sent the scene into an awkward silence. What did he say, and why was he so confident? Musk said that China's economy could surpass the United States by two or even three times in the future.
This answer surprised everyone, they didn't expect Musk to say such a thing. The original intention of the American general to ask this question was to hope that Musk would show that the United States is already ahead of the world and does not need to pay attention to China.
Musk once experienced an economic dividend in China, which also made him full of expectations for China's development. He gave such an answer in the talks on in-depth cooperation in the field of civilian space and national technology.
Although there were commercial considerations in his answers, much of his praise for China was also due to his portrayal of China.
At the meeting, in addition to China's economic development, Musk also put forward suggestions and warnings about the balance of forces between the two sides under military conditions. He stressed the importance of radical innovation and stopping infighting.
Musk believes that the essence of radical innovation is to closely integrate social and people's livelihood with the military field to achieve extensive cross-border. This is consistent with the central idea of the meeting, that is, to dig deep into private science and technology, encourage private users to participate, and increase the first expenditure on the United States.
For the sake of the country's strength, Musk suggested that the army implement radical innovations, pay attention to the continued development of the space sphere, and carry out a radical reform of the command of the army.
Musk expressed concern about the U.S. scientific research field, and said that during his visit to China, he found that China's scientific and technological development is not inferior to that of the United States. Chinese scientists even surpass the United States in R&D capabilities, even though they spend only one-third of their R&D spending.
His remarks appear to be praising China, but they are actually a reminder to the United States to be vigilant. Musk also called on Americans to stop infighting and work together, otherwise they will not be able to compete with China's competitiveness.
The post-World War II world has changed dramatically, and the United States is no longer the sole dominant force in the world economy. While the U.S. economy is still strong, it has already declined compared to before.
At the same time, China's economy continues to grow and become an important force on the world stage. After the end of World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union began to engage in fierce competition based on the differences in national political systems, which marked the beginning of the Cold War.
Between 1944 and 1950, the United States was not directly hit by World War II and absorbed a large number of German scientists, making the United States the highest economic and military power in the world during this period.
However, the People's Republic of China had just been established at this time, and it was faced with many difficulties and challenges. During this period, the United States' reserves reached three-quarters of the world's, and its exports accounted for half of the global market.
In addition, the adoption of the Bretton Woods system made the US dollar an international currency, and the status of the US dollar was significantly enhanced during this period. However, this system also set the stage for a recession in the United States.
The main idea of the Bretton Woods system was to peg the U.S. dollar to the U.S. dollar, which at that time set at an official price of $35 per ounce, while pegging the currencies of other countries to the U.S. dollar.
Due to the hard pass, the U.S. dollar has also become the equivalent of the hard currency, in addition to the U.S. dollar, countries also use the U.S. dollar as a key storage currency, which marks the U.S. economy and the world economy are closely connected.
In 1950, the U.S. dollar became the world's most sought-after currency, and the U.S. dollar was used for debt settlement between countries around the world. However, during the war, China's domestic currency was chaotic, and various currencies such as silver dollars, fiat currency, and Yuan Datou were mixed.
However, with the outbreak of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, China's leaders supported North Korea with the concept of "fighting with one punch, lest a hundred blows come", thus reversing the situation of domestic economic chaos.
The military, armament, and economic differences between China and the United States are obvious; at first, the United States took the direction of the war, but in the white mountains and black waters of the Korean battlefield, it encountered victory after victory of the Chinese People's Volunteers.
Historically, in addition to the best equipment and personnel morale, the decisive factor in the outcome of the war is the military supply capacity, that is, the economic strength of both sides. There is an old Chinese saying that "the soldiers and horses go first before the grain and grass are moved", and the essence of war is attrition, and the key lies in who can make better use of their economic strength.
In order to gain an advantage in the war, the United States had to increase its spending on armaments. At this time, the U.S. dollar has not only circulated in the United States, but has become an international equivalent currency and is valued for its rarity.
However, in order to support the spending on armaments at the front, the United States printed a lot of dollars, which led to a decrease in the real value of the dollar. The decline in the dollar economy had little impact on the economic relations between China and the United States at that time, because the People's Republic of China was implementing its first five-year plan.
However, the victory in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea raised China's international standing, followed by a honeymoon period in Sino-Soviet relations, in which China completed many infrastructure constructions with the help of the Soviet Union and restored its economic strength.
Looking back at history, the United States was constantly competing with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and frequently launched foreign wars, such as the Berlin Wall in 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, which made the international situation tense.
At the same time, China is still quietly accumulating strength, and its economic level is growing slowly. In 1961, the United States launched an invasion of Vietnam at the same time as the Cold War with the Soviet Union, however, the outcome of the war did not go as the United States expected, and Vietnam, which received assistance from China, took advantage of its geographical advantage to drag the United States into the quagmire of war.
Unlike the Korean War, which preceded it, the United States did not withdraw in time and continued to be drawn into the war. In order to win, the United States once again printed a large number of dollars, but this did not have a fundamental impact on the domestic economy.
In 1967, the Third Middle East War became a pivotal event that really affected the United States. At that time, while the United States was mired in the quagmire of the Vietnam War, it also set foot in the Middle East theater and began the road of printing large quantities of dollars for the third time.
However, the defeat on the battlefield in Vietnam and the Middle East oil crisis followed, which led to the rapid depreciation of the dollar, the United States fell into an economic crisis, inflation was rampant, and even beggars were reluctant to accept the handouts of the dollar.
China, on the other hand, completed the development of the atomic bomb during this period, the domestic economic situation was very good, and the victory in the counterattack against Vietnam and the second indirect victory over the United States gave China sufficient confidence.
At the same time, the bipolar pattern of the world has changed to one superpower and many powers. At present, China has become a hotbed of rapid economic development. According to relevant data in 2021, China's economy accounts for 18% of the world's size, second only to the United States.
In 2020, the global share of China's manufacturing industry was 2839%, and in 2021, it has increased to 2976%。According to China's economic development level, by 2030, China will surpass the United States and become the largest country in the world economic system.
China has not only made remarkable achievements in scientific research, but also enjoys a good reputation in infrastructure construction. According to statistics, China ranks second in the proportion of global scientific research countries, second only to the United States.
However, China's progress has far surpassed that of other countries, and it took only 60 years to achieve the development goals of other countries for more than 200 years, which fully reflects China's firm belief in scientific research and perseverance.
In addition, China is also known internationally as the "infrastructure madman", creating a series of "world's best", which is amazing.
The Three Gorges Dam project, as a landmark project in China, cost 954600 million RMB, 2,335 meters long, 185 meters elevation of the dam crest, completed in 2006 after 12 years.
China's large-scale infrastructure construction not only has outstanding performance at home, but also actively assists the economic infrastructure of other countries, an initiative that many African countries have received from China since the beginning of the last century.
Among them, the Rai Railway, which China assisted Nigeria to build, is the most technologically advanced railway in Africa, which has greatly promoted Nigeria's economic development and the convenience of local residents.
China's strength in infrastructure construction is not only reflected in its assistance to economically underdeveloped regions such as Africa, but also in recognition of European and other countries, such as the railway reconstruction project from Serbia to Hungary.
At first, Serbia wanted European countries to take over the project, but due to the harsh conditions, European countries said they could not complete it. But when the project was taken over by China, China not only completed the task in a short time, but also fully met Serbia's requirements.
With the rise of China, the status of the leading power has been gradually established, the improvement of the investment environment, the stable growth of the economy, and the broad market environment have made China a hot spot for foreign investors.
Musk's prediction that China will surpass the United States is not a lie, at present, our country is vibrant, united, and has firm determination and strength to protect and realize the dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.