scholarly journals Quo Vadis Cooperation Between China and Eastern Europe in the Era of COVID-19?

World Affairs ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 184 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-56
Author(s):  
Emilian Kavalski
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Public Diplomacy ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
The Social ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
Quo Vadis ◽  
The Belt And Road

The countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) used to be quite buoyant about benefiting from China’s economic largesse. A little over a year ago, China’s cooperation with the region was brandished as a real feather in China’s foreign policy cap. Today, however, the China-CEE cooperation appears to be done with. This development has led many to question whether the China-CEE cooperation has become a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic. The answer provided here is: no, not at all! Most CEE states have been mulling a freeze in their participation for quite some time. In this respect, the pandemic has only accelerated the social distancing of CEE countries from China. The study suggests that the unrequited romance of China with the CEE region has important implications both for the country’s public diplomacy and the post-pandemic trajectories of the Belt and Road Initiative.

scholarly journals International Relations with Chinese Characteristics

2019 ◽  
Vol 01 (02) ◽  
pp. 1950006
Author(s):  
Ralph Pettman
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
International Cooperation ◽  
Free Trade ◽  
The State ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Chinese Characteristics ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
The Belt And Road

International relations, as currently construed, are multi-dimensional. They are also Euro-American, which means modern-day China had no hand in making them. It was obliged to adapt to the state-centered, marketeering, nationalistic realities with which it was confronted when it became independent. And adapt it did. It also, however, revised these realities by adopting its own approach. Its leaders first repudiated China’s traditional experiences, while reworking its world ones to promote their own ends. Later, however, they began to express admiration for the values and vision of their own culture and civilization. They began to articulate policies, like the Belt and Road Initiative, that were not only representative of Euro-American principles, such as international cooperation and free trade, but also representative of non-Euro-American principles, such as the so-called “tribute system”. The latter characterized China’s foreign policy approach for millennia. It still arguably demonstrates China’s willingness not only to accept — while reforming — those Euro-American practices imposed upon it, but also to repudiate — by revolutionizing — those very same practices.

The Challenge of Implementing the Belt and Road Initiative in the Middle East: Connectivity Projects under Conditions of Limited Political Engagement

2019 ◽  
Vol 237 ◽  
pp. 196-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoram Evron
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
Regional Engagement ◽  
Sphere Of Influence ◽  
The Belt And Road

AbstractSceptics query China's economic and political ability to realize its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Less attention has been paid to BRI's implications for one of the defining features of China's foreign policy: low engagement in areas beyond its traditional sphere of influence. The Middle East is such a case. Addressing this issue, the article explores the mutual impact of China's low political involvement in the Middle East and BRI's realization. Distinguishing cross-border connectivity projects from other BRI-associated activities, the article examines the challenges to executing BRI-related projects in Israel. It finds that realizing connectivity projects – the essence of the BRI vision – will require China to increase its regional engagement, a shift that it has so far avoided.

scholarly journals Challenges for the Promotion and Development of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Central and Eastern Europe Under the Belt and Road Initiative

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Feifei Xue ◽  
Xiaoyong He ◽  
Wenzhi Hao ◽  
Jiajia Qin ◽  
Jiaxu Chen
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Medicine ◽  
Traditional Chinese Medicine ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Cultural Connotation ◽  
English Translations ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Belt And Road

Along with the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is increasingly used and attracts more interest in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). As an important bridge between different cultures, translation plays a major role in promoting TCM in CEE. However, there are some problems in the translation process hindering further promotion of TCM theories and culture in CEE. First of all, the English translations of TCM classics and textbooks lack universally accepted standards, and the quality of TCM text translation is low. Secondly, TCM translators lack sufficient training in TCM knowledge. Also, the translation of TCM materials lacks cultural connotation. Through analyzing the current problems of TCM translation in CEE, this study proposed three suggestions: strengthening the exchange between the government and experts, regulating the translation of TCM textbooks, and strengthening the training of TCM translators.

scholarly journals Do Central and Eastern Europe Countries Play a Role in the Belt and Road Initiative? The Case of Chinese OFDI into the CEE–16 Countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 7-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomasz Bieliński ◽  
Magdalena Markiewicz ◽  
Ewa Oziewicz
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Direct Investment ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Outward Foreign Direct Investment ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Theoretical Concepts ◽  
Development Path ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
The Belt And Road ◽  
The Eu

The main aim of the article was to analyze the motives behind the FDI decisions of Chinese companies’ capital engagement in Central and Eastern Europe. The article examines the applicability of existing theoretical concepts towards Chinese outward foreign direct investment (OFDI). Chinese OFDI patterns have been found to be consistent with Dunning’s investment development path (IDP) theory, but research shows that OFDI to CEE countries is additionally driven by specific motives different than in other regions. The study has proved that one of the major purposes is to get access to the EU common market. Additionally, data analysis has revealed that CEE countries that are not part of the EU attract proportionally more Chinese FDI than those that have easier access to EU funds.

scholarly journals One Belt, One Road Initiative and Its Geostrategic Significance for Eastern Europe

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 171-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Pantea
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Xi Jinping ◽  
One Belt One Road ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
Global Project ◽  
China Dream

Abstract China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as it was formally announced by President Xi Jinping in 2013, it is an engine for foreign policy, but it represents as well the driver force of China’s economic growth - and as such, it plays an important role in the domestic policy. China's foreign policy aims to support domestic growth and employment, must be aligned with the narratives of ‘rejuvenation’ and the ‘China Dream’. As such, the present paper discusses the origins and development of BRI; it analyses the mechanism in which BRI promotes China’s domestic agenda; as well as it regards at the geostrategic aims and difficulties of such an ambitions global project

scholarly journals A Legal Conquest of the Arctic? China, the European Nordic Countries and Multilateralism

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Selina Morell
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
White Paper ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Master's Thesis ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
The Belt And Road

China published its first White Paper on the Arctic region in 2018, announcing its vision of integrating it as a Polar Silk Road under its Belt and Road Initiative framework. This marked the beginning of an increasingly assertive Chinese presence in the Arctic and indicated that the region has gained strategic significance in Beijing’s foreign policy agenda. This master’s thesis examined whether the inclusion of the Arctic in the framework of China’s Belt and Road Initiative has influenced the Chinese foreign policy approach towards the Arctic countries. If the inclusion of the Arctic did indeed have an impact, this could help to assess the overall influence of the Belt and Road Initiative on China’s foreign policy and gain a better understanding of how China operates in its context.

scholarly journals The Mask Diplomacy of China in Southeast Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1(50)) ◽  
pp. 73-81
Author(s):  
Natalia G. Rogozhina ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
The United States ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Asian Countries ◽  
Territorial Conflict ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
The Belt And Road ◽  
Southeast Asian Countries

The article notes that China's mask diplomacy in Southeast Asia is an integral part of its foreign policy aimed at strengthening its positions in the region by increasing the level of confidence. By providing assistance to Southeast Asian countries in the fight against COVID-19, China hopes to improve its image of a “benevolent” neighbor in the region. At the same time, the priority was given to those countries of Southeast Asia with which the closest relations have developed and which are participating in the Belt and Road Initiative. In the development of the achieved success in mask diplomacy, China is moving to the implementation of the so-called vaccine diplomacy in Southeast Asia. However, despite the currently pronounced humanitarian orientation of China's foreign policy in Southeast Asia, the continuing territorial conflict in the South China Sea plays against its positive image in the region as “generous sponsor”. Time will tell whether mask diplomacy will help China gain an edge in the competition for influence in the region. But one thing is clear – China is acting decisively and does not miss a single chance to provide support for the countries of Southeast Asia in the competition with the United States.

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