> This would mean China is always a step behind. China wants to become the leading country. To achieve that in the shortest time span possible, they copy whatever they can, learn from it and build upon on it. In short, China copies, then innovates.

They don't necessarily have to innovate to become a leading country. They could do that by achieving mere technological parity, but producing it at a larger scale.

For instance, if China slavishly copied all US weapons designs and went to war with the US, China would win. It has more population and a larger industrial base, which means more soldiers in uniform and more equipment on the battlefield. The slavish copying would neutralize the US "quality" advantage, turning the conflict into one about "quantity."