Xi Jinping has hosted more than a dozen leaders this year, as ‘middle powers’ look beyond the US

China’s leader wants to promote his alternative to the current world order, and his efforts are being assisted by a capricious US

Xi Jinping meets Bangladesh’s new prime minister on Friday, the latest in a wave of world leaders to visit Beijing this year as the Chinese leader builds his influence and economic ties, and seeks to “shift the balance of power” away from the west.

Xi’s meeting with Tarique Rahman comes less than two weeks after the Chinese leader welcomed Myanmar’s military chief-turned-president, Min Aung Hlaing, in Beijing.