"Several governments that once appeared firmly positioned within China's orbit are now pursuing more flexible and pragmatic policies." [China's orbit]
This directly names the structural failure mode: states that were supposed to be locked into Beijing's sphere are instead hedging, confirming that economic dependency did not produce durable geopolitical alignment.
Reasoning from this article
The article documents multiple cases — Panama, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Honduras — where Chinese economic investment failed to prevent political realignment toward Washington. This is not idiosyncratic but reflects a general structural dynamic: economic dependency creates leverage only when no credible alternative patron exists. When a rival great power re-engages, client states exploit their position as swing actors. The same dynamic is likely operative in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific, making this a broadly generalizable structural claim about the limits of economic statecraft.