Year of great uncertainty

China needs to actively respond to the challenges arising from changes of leadership in a number of countries

Many major powers and emerging economies have undergone or will undergo leadership transitions this year. These leadership changes will have far-reaching effects on the international community and are bound to begin a new cycle of the global political and economic evolution.

Multiple elections lead to more uncertainties in the international situation, as leadership transitions not only reshape domestic political landscapes and reshuffle political forces and social thought, but also affect the formulation of a country's diplomatic strategy. Currently, relations among major powers, especially US-Russia relations and China-US relations and the China-US-Russia triangle, are evolving in a subtle way.