http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/27/content_11952622.htm

China's international influence is at an all-time peak now, and the country needs to engage in new thinking in international affairs as it moves forward to create another 60 years of peace and prosperity for the Chinese people, a well-known Singapore expert said.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, Kishore Muhbubani, dean of Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said that the whole world is truly impressed by the speed and scale of China's economic development. This is why hundreds of foreign delegations visit China each year to learn the reasons for China's spectacular successes.

Kishore said that many in the West are troubled that China is not following the Western development model, it is amazing that many in the West are not aware that if China had followed the Western model, the Chinese could have suffered as much as Russians did after Gorbachev had followed the Western model.

Only 12 percent of the world's population live in the West, and 88 percent live in the rest of the world. The rest of the world understands better how difficult it was for China to maintain both political stability and rapid economic growth. Hence, there is greater admiration for China in the rest of the world, he added.