When Deng Xiaoping launched China's economic reform programme nearly 30 years ago, he had one simple idea about foreign policy: keep a low profile. "Hide the brightness, nourish obscurity," he told colleagues - or other countries will feel threatened and gang up to block China's rise.

That part of Deng's legacy will be well and truly buried today when the Beijing Olympics start. With a multi-million-dollar budget for an opening ceremony designed by a prize-winning film director, China is no longer hiding its brightness.