Nationalist China as the Third Superpower in the Cold War?

so were a lot of post-colonial regimes which turned out successful or semi-successful as of 1945
like which ones? South Korea did turn out pretty successful but I don't think the regime was ever as unpopular as the KMT. Not to mention that the country is much smaller and easier to manage than China is. South Vietnam was basically a mini version of KMT China and fell for pretty much the same reasons.
 
Not sure about Nationalist China becoming a Third Superpower, however it could potentially be very influential in the Non-Aligned Movement or even seek to establish a centrist to right-leaning analogue / bloc.
 

B-29_Bomber

Banned
South Korea did turn out pretty successful but I don't think the regime was ever as unpopular as the KMT.

South Korea had the advantage of having been a war zone at the end of WWII and during the Korean War plus the Kims in North Korea were seen as just as legitimate as the Southern regime. South Vietnam collapsed as much due to the popularity of Uncle Ho as the unpopularity of the Southern regime (indeed, things only really began falling apart when Diem was overthrown; making South Vietnam merely a glorified playground for the US Military).

Also, there was no mechanism put in place to reunite North and South Korea like in Vietnam that was patently ignored by the South due to the popularity of Uncle Ho.

As you might have guessed, I hate it when people compare Korea to Vietnam.

As for KMT China, they would have the support of the wealthy West and the KMT would milk it for all its worth in order to develop China. I'd imagine that KMT China would would maintain reasonably good relations with the West up to the mid 1970s with a gradual cooling of relations (though barely noticeable) through the late 70s into the 1980s. The turning point would be the fall of the Soviet Union, with the only other major power (Russia) being brought down, China could now begin to fill in that role.

My argument for this is while KMT China wouldn't have to deal with Mao's policies, it would have to deal with corruption and centralization issues, which would have similar, if less flashy, effects on China. I do believe that reform is possible, but it will take time. However, it would have access to Western markets and be recognized by the West as China from the get go.

By 2017, I'd imagine KMT China would be similar to the PRC from OTL.
 
For this to work, there would have to be rapid reconstruction and industrialization (in the style of 5 year plans) before China could export its ideology to different parts of the globe.
Those five year plans sure turned the Soviets, Chinese, and other communist countries into economic powerhouses...
 
Those five year plans sure turned the Soviets, Chinese, and other communist countries into economic powerhouses...
With an insanely high human cost, turning public opinion against the ruling party and only stopping rebellion through armed repression. Another option to rapid rebuilding would be US-funded reconstruction like was the case in Japan, though I don't know if the KMT would allow this degree of American influence within China.
 
Neither did OTL India. Yeah OTL India still lags behind the PRC today, despite both countries starting out at roughly the same place in 1950. But what OTL India does have along with KMT China are massive amounts of corruption that would severely hinder economic growth. Corruption wasn't really a problem in the PRC until after the success of Deng's economic reforms.

Several things hold India back. The main ones are land tenure rules that prevent the consolidation of agricultural land and rules protecting small scale retailers. There are others. Not as blatantly destructive as the Great Leap Forward or the Cultural Revolution but enormously damaging nonetheless. It just proves that there are many ways of destroying an economy

Corruption in China was rampant under Mao as favors were the only thing anyone could trade. Take the communal kitchens. If you were on good terms with the staff, they made sure you got some beef in your soup; if not, you just got the broth and starved
 
China could have played a third way role in the Cold War. The KMT was nationalist and Chiang was pro-China as long as that wasn't anti-Chiang. with decent policies, it wouldn't be hard to get China to be a per captia income level of about a third of the US. given its large population that would make her able to rival even America. Getting China's economy competitive to Soviet standards would be even easier

with its unique culture it and geographical position, it could come to dominate the anti-colonial movements in Southeast Asia bring it into conflict with the West and its Northern border with the Soviets would make a Sino-Soviet rivalry natural
 

B-29_Bomber

Banned
"advantage"??? That's like the "advantage" of being hit over the head with a baseball bat.

More like two men being beaten with baseball bats until hospitalized, with police escort, which makes it impossible for them to do anything stupid (like kill the other guy).

Due to Korea being a war zone the Korean people were too tired and lacked investment in either regimes (which were both placed in power by foreign powers-that-be) that they lacked the desire to maintain the long term struggle that the Vietnamese could and did.

In most other cases I'd agree with you, being a war zone is down right shitty, but being one contributed to buying the South enough time to rebuild and reform.
 
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