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China has evolved into an important provider of resources for developing countries, encompassing capital, know-how and expertise. China has also actively worked to strengthen diplomatic ties with developing regions since the early 2000s. Against this backdrop, the governments in many developing countries have moved to incorporate China as a significant factor in their geopolitical and geoeconomic considerations. Under the rule of the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, AKP), Turkey has also sought to foster relations with China, particularly since the early 2010s. This pursuit has been further triggered by Ankara's strained relations with the United States and the European Union. Turkish political leadership envisions China as a potentially crucial partner that could enhance the country's autonomy in relation to the West. While this expectation has not entirely materialized so far, there is an ongoing debate regarding the extent to which China can potentially be a transformative actor in Turkey's position within the international order. This paper contributes to this debate by locating Turkey-China engagement within a broader context of China's power and influence in the developing world. The paper suggests that the potential for Turkey's cooperation with China is likely to remain relatively limited for the foreseeable future. This is not only due to Turkey's deeply rooted ties with the West, but also because of the nature of China's global power, which is more partial and not as deep as commonly assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China’s economic resurgence augurs the possibility of a recalibration in the global balance of power. Many contend that this process is already underway in East Asia – specifically in relation to the South China Sea. In other parts of the world, China’s growing footprint is discernible through infrastructure projects, under Beijing’s Belt and Road initiative. Does China leverage its economic power to realise its interests by forcing smaller nations to accept conditions and agreements which are not in the latter’s interests? This paper examines whether evidence to this effect is visible through a case study of Sri Lanka. The island’s geographic location – astride the Indian Ocean Sea Lanes of Communication – continues to draw the attention of regional and extra-regional powers. Sri Lanka’s constraints in size and poor pace of economic development also grants leeway for India (the regional hegemon) and China to leverage bilateral ties in their interest. Is there evidence to suggest that China has utilised port infrastructure to realise its national interests at the expense of Sri Lanka? Or, has Sri Lanka managed to thread a fine line between the two Asian powers: the neighbouring regional hegemon – India; and the resurgent great power – China? Does the truth lie somewhere in between? This article delves into these questions by examining the approaches and stances which Sri Lanka has adopted towards both nations, particularly during President Gotabaya Rajapakse’s government, from 2019 leading up to the end of 2021. By doing so, it aims to shed light on how Sri Lanka handled bilateral ties with both Asian powers as well as the degree of Sino-Indian competition visible within the island’s port infrastructure landscape. It concludes that the decisions reached with regard to port infrastructure projects represent a mixed picture. A key finding is the ability of domestic interest groups to shape Sri Lanka’s foreign policy during this period, which has significantly dented the island’s ties with other regional allies such as Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to discuss the situation of Mauritius in the post-colonial geopolitical configuration of the Indian Ocean. The island nation, a former British colony that has been independent since 1968, is today confronted with geopolitical issues that place it within a dilemma. Its recent allegiance with India, through preferential trade partnership, makes claiming sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago which was part of its territory before independence complicated. There is in an ongoing conflict with Great Britain and, indirectly, the United States on this contentious issue. At the same time, Mauritius needs to consider China’s influence in the region since it partners with most of the independent nations on matters of economic development. Mauritius itself has established an important trading platform through Chinese assistance. Concurrently, the Mauritian relationship with the United States cannot be compromised as it has been the major trading partner since 1794 with an embassy established in 1968. Hence, trapped between economic ties from all the partners engaged in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius strives to maintain its neutrality, while also being obliged to accept that its location, size and influence might not be enough to contest against past and emerging superpowers. To this end, the power games remain as complex as ever in the Indian Ocean when seen from a Mauritian perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the beginning of the 21st century, an unprecedented theoretical change in perspective took place, and non-Western theoretical approaches began to be developed as an alternative to traditional theories of International Relations. In this way, some specialists began to debate about the emergence and consolidation of a "Chinese School of International Relations", based mostly on the Asian culture. The aim of this paper is to present the main streams of international studies in China, among which the reverse, obverse and interactive approaches stand out. Likewise, it is particularly intended to understand the conception of international cooperation of each of these approaches. In addition, it is intended to highlight the evolution of international studies in China and departs from the assumption that the production and changes of the axis of international studies follow the rise and geographical position of the great powers. In the Chinese case, they have been growing in parallel with its international prominence and the attainment of great power status. The theoretical framework proposed for this research takes as a starting point the so-called non-western theories, that is, all those theories that are not part of the mainstream of the Western International Relations Theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The following article will address the strategic importance of the brics' agreement for China, as well as the role China plays within the group. Firstly, it analyzes the development of the brics as a coalition of countries that, in the beginning, were united around a shared economic objective and then, over time, evolved to a point at which each member state was responding to their own strategic interest. Secondly, China is often an object of international criticism for its own development process, and this paper will address the benefit that China gains from the brics agreement. The agreement diffuses international tension, promotes cooperation among member states, and defends its development plans. Lastly, the paper argues that China should refrain from exerting a leadership role within the brics group, but rather should focus on serving as an agent for consolidation and cohesion among the group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008 the People's Republic of China disseminated the White Paper to Latin American countries with a two-dimensional strategy: the promotion of particularity logic and the promotion of omnidirectionality. In addition, China-Celac Forum (ccf), created in 2014, is the most important platform for China to promote cooperation towards Latin American countries. Thus, the present study demonstrates comparatively that the ccf applies the two dimensions of the Chinese strategy under three institutional principles: flexibility, nonconditionality and multiplicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After twenty-five years of the end of the Cold War, the impact of the rise of China in the international system can be analyzed from material and ideational elements of power. This article seeks to identify whether China's importance is internationally overrated, or if this country can really challenge U.S. hegemony. Most of the literature on Chinese potential has overlooked its internal policy, which is a determining factor in the international system, according to the realist perspective. Using the inductive method, this paper will attempt to establish the causal relation between domestic and international politics. This will highlight China's need to solve border disputes with its neighbors, make a commitment to respect human rights, and solve the needs of a population that is highly dissatisfied with the present government due to inequality and corruption. These factors challenge China in its quest to achieve a new distribution of power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The technological benefits of space hardware are universally recognized. One is hard pressed to find an area of the world where satellite dishes for television reception, satellite use for data transmission, or the Global Positioning System (GPS) for multiple purposes are not utilized. But utilization of commercial or of other countries' space assets does not equate to being a space-faring nation. Space-faring nations have, to varying degrees, their own capabilities. The importance of status as a space-faring nation comes from two sources: not having to rely on others for access to the benefits of space assets, and prestige that can translate into geopolitical influence. Beyond users and space-faring nations, there are those countries actively asserting space leadership in some form, whether regional or global. What pushes countries to go beyond being a space-faring nation and assert leadership potential, including potentially engaging in an implicit or explicit space race, is techno-nationalism, which for the purposes of this paper refers to nationalism that becomes the impetus for technology development as an indicator of geostrategic power. It is often triggered by a threat or perception of a threat, including a threat to perceived leadership. Techno-nationalism carries with it an inherent quest for leadership, by some definition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]