Debates on Changes in the Foreign Policy of Contemporary China (A Case Study of the English Language Academic Publications)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 112-150
Author(s):  
S. K. Pestsov
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
English Language ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
World Politics ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Narrative Approaches ◽  
Regional Dynamics ◽  
Low Profile ◽  
Academic Publications ◽  
Radical Transformation

Due to a rapid economic growth over the past several decades China has significantly strengthened its international positions. This growth in its own turn was to a large extent due to a pragmatic and sound foreign strategy that the country has been pursuing since mid-1970s. However, in recent years both within and outside China there has been an on-going debate on the alleged radical transformation of the PRC’s perceptions of its national interests, its place in world politics, and its foreign policy. The variety of opinions becomes increasingly complicated as the number of discussants grows and new arguments are adduced in support of different positions. Whereas outside China this debate structures around the narrative of the Chinese assertiveness, within the country the main dispute is between the advocates of a traditional policy of ‘keeping a low profile’ (taoguang yanghui) and proponents of a new ‘striving for achievements’ (fenfa youwei) strategy. The present paper aims to provide a framework for a systematization of debates on the contemporary foreign policy of China in the English language academic literature based on two criteria: whether a researcher admits that the Chinese foreign policy is changing and how he assesses implications of these changes. Such an approach undoubtedly entails certain schematization of the presented views and arguments. However, it differs favorably from traditional, more narrative approaches to conceptualization of the debate since it establishes a clear, transparent theoretical framework aimed to identify the substantive core of the presented views. This, in turn, can bring about a better understanding of the current state and possible evolution of Chinese foreign policy in general. The author concludes that although these debates are far from being over, most researchers admit the PRC’s foreign policy strategy is undergoing a radical transformation. Since the latter half of 2000s there has been a steady trend in the foreign policy of China towards greater assertiveness. At the same time this transformation ensures continuity of the basic principles of Chinese diplomacy. All this means that further debates on the Chinese foreign policy should focus primarily on potential implications of this transformation for the PRC, the regional dynamics and international relations system as a whole.

Speaking to the foreign audience: Chinese foreign policy concerns as expressed in China Daily, January 1989–June 1993

1994 ◽  
Vol 53 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 43-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Stone ◽  
Liu Binyan
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
English Language ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Global Power ◽  
English Language Publication ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
International English ◽  
China Daily

This paper examines the foreign policy priorities and concerns of the People's Republic of China as expressed by that nation's official international, English language publication, China Daily. The paper argues that, contrary to the conventional wisdom, the official Chinese press can be a useful tool in assessing Chinese foreign policy priorities as result of its propaganda function. Within this paradigm, it finds that China's primary foreign policy priorities are sovereignty and territorial integrity and that China considers itself primarily a regional rather than a global power. It concludes that China's foreign policy is driven by pragmatism rather than ideology because of China's domestic project of economic development.

Chinese Foreign Policy: Pragmatism and Strategic Behavior. Edited by Suisheng Zhao. [Armonk, NY and London: M.E. Sharpe, 2004. 319 pp. $26.95. ISBN 0-7656-1285-2.]

2004 ◽  
Vol 180 ◽  
pp. 1095-1097
Author(s):  
Patrick Belton
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Strategic Behavior ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Chinese Nationalism ◽  
Fresh Material ◽  
The Government ◽  
Rising Power

Suisheng Zhao has assembled this volume from articles recently published in the Journal of Contemporary China, which he edits. Its chapters cover recognizable terrain for political scientists: whether China, as a rising power, will seek to maximize its relative or absolute gains; the likelihood its increasing power will tend towards status-quo or belligerent lines; and the degree of Chinese ‘exceptionalism’ when compared with other countries. As the subtitle might suggest, the contributions present China in a favourable light, stressing how China's leaders have spurned ideological purism for the pragmatic weighing of national interests, with only nationalism to serve as a double-edged sword by conferring legitimacy on the government, but potentially also taking it away. The assertion that strategic calculations govern Chinese foreign policy contrasts with other interpretations, such as those of David Lampton in Same Bed, Different Dreams, who assigns a large role to domestic politics, or Peter Gries in Understanding Chinese Nationalism, who highlights the constraining role of nationalist ideology on the ability of China's leaders to de-escalate crises with other countries. Zhao's contribution lies less in defending the assertion of pragmatism against those competing perspectives and more in drawing upon it in offering fresh material.

Revolution, modernization and Chinese foreign policy

1986 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-241
Author(s):  
J. D. Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
General Public ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
Great Power ◽  
Alternative Perspective ◽  
The World ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Radical Transformation

If Churchill's aphorism about Russia being ‘a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma’ was an apt formulation of Western puzzlement about that nation, several further layers of obfuscation would be required accurately to depict Western perceptions of China. Since 1949 a number of conflicting conceptions of China's nature and purpose have vied with each other to gain the allegiance of analysts, governments and the general public alike. There was, for too many years, the China of American demonology: aggressive, expansionist and cruel, conspiring with the USSR to bring about world domination, its implacable rulers brooding malevolently over their nation of docile ants. Even while this notion held centre stage, an alternative perspective was available from such eminent Sinologists as C. P. Fitzgerald and I. K. Fairbank: that China had not undergone such a dramatic metamorphosis under the communists as many believed but was still ‘eternal China’, reproducing the same age-old patterns of behaviour that had persisted with little change through many centuries, if not millennia. Then, during the 1960s a new image emerged: China the ultrarevolutionary power, itself engaged upon a process of radical transformation through the turbulence of the Cultural Revolution, while simultaneously acting as the principal inspiration of violent revolution elsewhere in the world. The Sino-American rapprochement soon produced an entirely different perspective: China was now a responsible great power, maintaining a global balance of power in accordance with the Nixon–Kissinger vision of international order.

Ambassador Henry Morgenthau's Special Mission of 1917

1949 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 308-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Yale
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
World Politics ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Private Group ◽  
Foreign Government ◽  
American Policy ◽  
The Impact

Attempts to explain world politics in terms of the clashes of sharply defined national interests have an air of unreality. This is because of the unequal interest of groups of the population in any particular course of official action. The little known and obscure, but historically important episode with which this article deals, describes the impact of one influential private group on foreign policy, even after the President of the United States had made an official determination of policy. It also throws light on the way in which a private group can operate through and with a foreign government, whose interests are parallel to its own, to change the direction of American policy. Similarly it illustrates how a foreign government can mould its relations with the United States (or with most countries) by developing a policy with a special appeal to particularly influential groups in that country.

scholarly journals German "Soft power" Policies in the Muslim World

2015 ◽  
pp. 144-151
Author(s):  
L. R. Rustamova
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
German Society ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Muslim World ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Political Values ◽  
Active Player ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
The One

In recent years, a number of foreign policy concepts declared the importance of using the instruments of "soft power" to promote the national interests of a country. Soft power is the ability through political values, culture and foreign policy to influence others by forming attractiveness [18]. Germany is generally recognized as the leader in the resources of "soft power." The article discusses what kind of resources are deployed by Germany to increase its "soft power" in the Muslim direction of foreign policy. The Muslim world has its own specifics, which complicate the use of instruments of "soft power." Countries with large Muslim population are difficult to influence, as they differ from Europe in the civilizational respect, have their own customs and traditions which they strictly follow because of the nature of Muslim religion. The author notes that in the Muslim direction of foreign policy the problem for Germany lies in the fact that the formation of its attractiveness resulted in a significant flow of immigration of Muslims in the country. A part of immigrant Muslims tries to live isolated from European society, professes radical currents ofIslam and participates in military conflicts abroad, participation in which in the role of active player is ruled out by Germany. Failure to integrate them into German society and the lack of progress in the formation of its positive image in the Muslim countries resulted, on the one hand, in the split of German society, on the other hand, in the threat of absorption by foreign civilization, as it is observed now in Germany the presence of "soft power" of Muslim countries, which use its former and current citizens to influence German political course. The article was written within the constructivist methodology, which consider the "soft power" as a way of construction of social reality with the use of tangible and intangible resources for the formation of an attractive image of Germany in world politics.

scholarly journals Iran’s Changing Foreign Policy Trends

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 95
Author(s):  
Iqra Jathol ◽  
Muhammad Qazafi ◽  
Tahir Husain
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
International System ◽  
The West ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Regional Dynamics ◽  
Foreign Policies ◽  
Iranian State ◽  
The Look ◽  
Policy Problems

The changes in international politics caused change in foreign policies of the states. The governments of many countries began to develop foreign policies to alliances and relations. According to with the "Look to the Iranian government, the East" can serve Iran's national interests and can break dependence on the West and balanced foreign policy problems: political isolation logical isolation. These are caused by Iran's foreign policy; Iran has rejected the prevailing norms of the international system and the regional dynamics. The immediate consequences are: political showdown with the West particularly the U.S. and in the region tensions have increased with the neighbors. At the same time Iran heavily relies on its oil and gas revenue to achieve an economic growth. At this time when Iran is facing increasing international isolation, "Look to the East" policy can serve as fine recipe for its stagnated oil business and the Asian nations. Iranian state is looking proactively towards the Asian Countries especially India. Iran’s foreign policy raises many unanswered questions. The objectives of study to provide an account and assessment of Iran’s relations with the outside world within these new systemic conditions and account of Iran’s relations with the rest of the world will be preceded by a brief historical account of these relations. The study tries to highlight about Iran’s foreign policy? How does Iran define its interests and choose to pursue them? Is this a matter to be explained or to be understood? Is its foreign policy based on words or deeds, behavior or action?

Chinese Foreign Policy under Hu Jintao:The Struggle between Low-Profile Policy and Diplomatic Activism

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhao Suisheng
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Chinese Foreign Policy ◽  
Low Profile ◽  
Global Power ◽  
China’S Foreign Policy ◽  
International Responsibility ◽  
The One ◽  
Rising Power ◽  
Chinese Diplomacy

AbstractThis article explores a controversial issue of Chinese foreign policy: whether the Hu leadership has abandoned Deng Xiaoping’s taoguang yanghui policy — hiding one’s capabilities and biding one’s time — and reoriented Chinese foreign policy towards a more assertive, if not more aggressive, direction. This is controversial because while China in public still insists that it follows the taoguang yanghui policy established by Deng in the early 1990s; Chinese diplomacy has become increasingly active and assertive since Hu came to power, particularly since the 2008-2009 global economic crisis. This article argues that as a rising power, an active foreign policy has become a necessity rather than a luxury for China. This diplomatic activism marks a certain departure from the taoguang yanghui policy, but the Hu leadership is still juggling China’s taoguang yanghui policy with its emerging role as a global power. One defining tension in China’s foreign policy agenda is to find a balance between expanding China’s international influence and taking more international responsibility on the one hand and continuing to play down its pretence of being a global power and avoiding confrontation with the United States on the other.

The “National Interest” and Contemporary World Politics

1978 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Martin Rochester
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
National Interest ◽  
World Politics ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Contemporary World ◽  
The Past ◽  
Precise Analysis ◽  
The Government

The “national interest” has proven to be a highly resilient concept, not only in terms of its malleability in the hands of foreign policymakers and various publics but also in terms of its ability to retain currency among several generations of international relations scholars despite repeated efforts to discredit it. There have been several attempts recently to rehabilitate the concept, including one by the Commission on the Organization of the Government for the Conduct of Foreign Policy which recognized that repudiation of the term by academics did not absolve practitioners from their continuing responsibility to define it. However, the problem with recent attempts on the part of scholars as well as practitioners to reformulate the “national interest” is that they fail to take into account adequately the new realities of world politics which have tended to upset the normal calculus. If the identification of “national interests” has defied precise analysis in the past, it is an even more difficult task today.

scholarly journals Approaches to Analysis of Interstate Cooperation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Rozanov ◽  
Maria Ivanchenko ◽  
Alexandra Baranova ◽  
Elena N. Antonova ◽  
Mikhail Smirnov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Foreign Relations ◽  
Cultural Diplomacy ◽  
World Politics ◽  
European Countries ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Interstate Cooperation ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
International Image

At the present day cultural diplomacy plays a rather important role in the development of international relations and world politics. This concept is receiving increasing attention from various countries, international and non-governmental organizations and other actors. This trend exists due to a number of reasons, such as the desire of states to create a positive image of their country, the expansion of international cooperation, changes in the global and domestic political situation, the protection of national interests, the prevention of conflicts between states, etc. Cultural diplomacy, beyond historical precedents, consists of a relatively new practice of a country’s foreign policy, which has traditionally focused on trade and security and defense issues. It is true that in European countries there are institutions of cultural foreign relations since the beginning of the century, but in the last decade the issues, related to the projection of the international image of countries, have become more important.

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