In a pivotal three-hour speech, China's President Xi Jinping on Wednesday painted a rosy picture of the country's accomplishments over the past five years. But how does China really stack up with the rest of the world when it comes to the economy, the environment and its military? When Xi assumed leadership of the ruling Chinese Communist Party in late 2012, the country was in pretty good shape. While the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent recession had taken its toll on China's economy, it still grew by 7.8% in 2012, and the year before had overtaken Japan to become the world's second-largest economy.
