Down which road will China lead the world?

• Last Updated: November 17. 2009 8:39PM UAE / November 17. 2009 4:39PM GMT

That American troops patrol a dirt road 50 kilometres south of Kabul is far from remarkable. Winding through the mountains of Logar province, it is like many others in Afghanistan. That may soon change. The Chinese have invested to make the road durable enough for their mining equipment and lorries to transport minerals out of the copper-rich region.

Where this road ultimately leads is anyone’s guess. On the one hand, infrastructure projects such as this, part of China’s $3 billion investment in the Aynak copper reserves, may be precisely what Afghanistan needs. If successful, it could provide thousands of jobs for Afghans and millions in revenue to Kabul. And for the Chinese, so desperate for copper that they recently relocated an entire South American village that sat on top of a rich seam, more than 200 million tonnes of copper in Aynak make it more valuable than a gold mine. From construction and computers to circuits and cables, Chinese development depends on an ever larger share of the world’s copper. But will China also need to assume a greater share of global responsibilities to obtain greater access to the minerals and markets it needs to grow?

China is right to criticise rampant deficit spending by both America’s government and its consumers. But China has been a complicit partner and beneficiary of America’s addiction to debt. China must change along with America if a global recovery is to be sustained. The old model of selling its cheap exports to western consumers too eager to take on more debt worked so well for China that it appears unwilling or unable to imagine a new one. China continues to keep its currency undervalued, providing its exports an unfair advantage. This benefits China in the short term but at the expense of a global recovery, as it limits the ability of other developing nations to grow. China has benefited enormously from a globalised marketplace, but now it has an obligation to play by its rules. While China, like every other nation, has a right to pursue its own national interest, this cannot be the only consideration of a global power.

What China does about its currency is just one of the many questions that will reveal the nature of its leadership and ambitions. As China’s economic influence increases it will also have more of an ability – and an obligation – to advance global security and development. The international community needs China’s help in pressuring Iran to be more forthcoming about its nuclear ambitions. So far, it has been reluctant to do so. While they have more leverage over North Korea than any other nation, the Chinese hesitated to wield it as their neighbour developed a nuclear weapon. Chinese investments in many mineral rich African nations have actually served to entrench leaders who have flouted international law rather than to promote human development.

What China has been able to achieve as its economy has matured, bringing hundreds of millions of its people out of poverty, is nothing short of astonishing. But now, millions more, from Angola to Afghanistan, depend on a China mature enough to understand its global responsibilities.