India, Jan. 4 -- As China continues its inexorable rise to global prominence, it is spreading its soft power throughout the global corridors of power. Beijing is well represented in most international organisations, and although its shareholding in the multilateral development banks is generally much smaller than that of the US, its influence in the decision-making process of these institutions often far exceeds its shareholding percentages. In some of them, little gets done without the wink and nod of China.

The same is true with international organisations, such as the UN, where China is punching far above its weight. A Chinese national is now in charge of 4 of the 15 specialised agencies of the United Nations (UN): the Food and Agricu...