Xi Jinping and the year of the foreign policy headache

China this week commemorated the 130th birthday anniversary of People Republic of China's revolutionary founder Mao Zedong, a leader whose thinking influences Xi today. As Kevin Rudd, Australia's former prime minister and now US ambassador, wrote last year, ideology drives policy more than the other way around in Xi's China. Even with the economy in dire straits that has not changed. Observers expect more moderate behaviour from Xi in 2024 as he comes under pressure to address China's economic challenges, including a residential property crisis, high government debt, rising youth unemployment and falling exports. However, at the same time he…