Search

How does India navigate contested regional multilateral frameworks in the Asia‐Pacific? This question has important implications for India's multilateral foreign policy and diplomacy that seeks to emerge from regional to global power. The authors argue that India's foreign policy involves seeking institutional balancing and avoiding rising power dilemmas. Based on the conceptual framework of institutional balancing and rising power dilemma, the paper examines how seeking institutional balancing helps India advance its diplomatic prowess vis‐à‐vis rising China while simultaneously leveraging its multi‐alignment strategy against the United States. Furthermore, the paper discusses India's key priorities for avoiding the rising power dilemma, thus exhibiting its reluctance to conform to the US hegemony and addressing its internal and external dilemma concerning China. The evaluation suggests that India's foreign policy rationality navigates between obtaining comprehensive security and economic gains in dealing with contested regional multilateralism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientists and diplomats have significant differences in professional skills, activity time and work content, but they should work together. With the deepening impact of science and technology (S&T) on socio-economic development and international relations, S&T has become a crucial component of national strategies, particularly for diplomacy. There is a need for scientific evidence and advice, meaning that mastering more knowledge and skills in S&T would be helpful in negotiations. This paper analyses the ideas of S&T diplomacy, including a review of its 40-year history in China, its definition (with detailed connotations) and its characteristics. The paper focuses on the significant role of people-to-people communication in S&T, which may inform future work. Five suggestions are given to strengthen the strategic planning of S&T diplomacy: (1) A more clarified, strategic goal of future-oriented S&T diplomacy is required; (2) It is important to build a theoretical system for China to describe S&T diplomacy; (3) The creation of a global S&T cooperation map that adapts to the new type of international relations would be valuable; (4) Fairness and justice shall be maintained, while a reform of the global S&T governance system is promoted; (5) It is a must to adhere to bottom-line thinking and strengthen risk prediction and emergency responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic diplomacy receives growing interest in the field of international relations research ever since the end of the cold war. Despite the vast number of literature on economic diplomacy, there are not many studies measuring the effect of economic diplomacy quantitatively. The purpose of this paper is to propose a method to measure economic diplomacy using the event study method that observes the influence of specific events on stock prices. In this study, the summit talks between the EU and China are selected as specific events that are considered as a form of economic diplomacy, and Airbus stock price, the proxy of the reaction to the economic diplomacy, was observed to verify the influence of it. The study categorized the summit talks by the type of participants whether the top politicians were included or not. The result shows that, among all summit talks, the summit talks between top politicians between the EU and China influence the stock price of Airbus positively, and it is statistically significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, Pakistan has embarked on a strategic realignment, prioritizing geoeconomics as a central pillar of its foreign policy. In this study, the core question that is addressed is whether geo-economic turn in Pakistan's foreign policy has led to greater interdependence or enhanced economic, political, and strategic power for Pakistan? The analysis delves into the various dimensions of Pakistan's geo-economic turn, including its efforts to foster regional connectivity, engage in the economic diplomacy, and attract foreign investment. It also examines the nation's evolving relationships with key regional players, such as China, India, Afghanistan, and Central Asian states. Through the study of documents related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and interviews conducted by policymakers and researchers, different dimensions of geo-economics are explored in this paper. A comprehensive review of economic indicators and strategic partnerships helped us to analyze the extent to which Pakistan's geo-economic approach has yielded positive outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some observers expected a drastic change in the Philippines' diplomacy toward China when Rodrigo Duterte said goodbye to the United States in 2016. However, after six years, the Philippines has remained an allied partner of the United States. The Philippines' defense establishment bolstered its maritime domain awareness capacity thanks to financial and technical support from the United States. Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) maintained the award from the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) favoring the Philippines over China. This paper sheds light on the Philippines' policymaking process by framing the politics of grand strategy in an emerging state. The grand strategy is an intellectual architecture to clarify the general direction of foreign policy shaped by multiple state actors who are not limited by the foreign affairs office. Neither asymmetrical power relations nor presidential power can dominate the direction of the Philippines' diplomacy. The president, the DFA, and the defense establishment have developed institutional foundations to craft particular policies. Once they designed the grand strategy in the 1990s, successive policymakers did not remove it but rather incrementally changed it, especially in the 2010s, when they faced a series of assertive actions from China. In an emerging state with limited state capacity, Filipino policymakers do not always coordinate well with each other but still maintain a certain level of autonomy to create particular policies. Against the dominant framework of the weak state, this paper argues that Filipino policymakers demonstrate the state's capacity to achieve their policy goals, even with limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Article Type: Viewpoint paper Purpose--This is an article which intends to clarify and profoundly specify China's North Korean foreign policy. Design, Methodology, Approach--This is a viewpoint paper which seeks to enhance the understanding of, and remedy any misunderstanding of China's key interest, as well as its intentions. Findings--First, regarding the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the subsequent sanctions against the North, China wants to be seen as a legitimate, norm-based, great power. Second is the PRC-DPRK bilateral economic cooperation, which is a practicality driven diplomacy. Strategic efforts for balancing between justification and practicality represent its diplomatic concerns because Beijing's efforts to strike a strategic balance have resulted in lowering its "bottom-line thinking.". Practical Implications--As competition between the U.S. and China intensifies, China will pursue a more tactical two-sided strategy between implementing sanctions against the North, while at the same time cooperating economically with North Korea. China has to realize that its policy towards the North will result in a continued lowering of its political and strategic room to maneuver. Originality, Value--While much of the literature on PRC-DPRK regards China's diplomacy through the "buffer zone" explanation, this study sheds light on two other motives that clarify China's actions. China's North Korea policy is strategically focused on the above two areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explains how China uses a debt Trap diplomacy to gain hegemony. The paper's descriptive-analytical hypothesis was that China seeks to expand its economic, political, and strategic influence in the region and the world to become a hegemonic power. Along the way, the country, through its Belt and Road initiative, especially lending to infrastructure projects called "public goods" to countries along its route, is trapping these countries in its circle and making them a platform for used its regional and global influence. This approach has created a negative perception of China in the eyes of international public opinion, and this has led China to move away from it instead of approaching the hegemonic position. The findings of the paper show that if countries have a negative perception of the public goods in the realm of international relations, the acquisition, maintenance, and promotion of the hegemonic position will be challenged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sino-Australia relations have experienced a rapid deterioration in the past half-decade. From genial ties centred around trade and exchange, the relationship has descended into mutual hostility, prompting the editor of China's Global Times to notoriously liken Australia to a blob of gum on the bottom of a shoe. To explain the deteriorating relationship, scholars have proposed numerous ideas, pointing to factors as wide-ranging as 'Chinese influence', poor diplomacy efforts, and ontological (in)security touched off by neoliberal governmentality. The current paper examines these ideas in a literature review, then synthesises such ideas to provide its own explanation of why things 'went wrong'. It also addresses corollary questions such as why Australia adopted a uniquely assertive China policy, and why this occurred specifically around 2017. We argue that the breakdown in relations can be attributed to the rise of nationalist, sovereignty-oriented movements in the West, and the spillover effect this had on Australian leadership; the profound uncertainty attending the election of Trump and his isolationist tendencies; and the shift to a more rigid, authoritarian approach to foreign affairs under Xi. This perspective adds to the literature by identifying failings on both sides while underscoring significant yet underappreciated global trends, such as nationalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the establishment of "friendly and cooperative relations' in 1992, relations between South Korea and China have been continuously elevated almost every 5 years. The two countries have achieved great advancements in expanding civil exchanges, bringing economic relations closer, finding common ground in foreign policy and security and elevation of political relations. Despite the honeymoon period that the two countries experienced after they established diplomatic relations, however, conflict is now arising due to differences in opinion and interests in various fields such politics, economy, society, culture, diplomacy, and security. This paper will examine Sino-South Korean relations using the four factor model, which is based on four approaches, starting with economic relations, followed by perception and emotions, diplomacy and security and lastly, these factors" influence on domestic politics. Following this analysis, this paper will argue that despite their continuous but rocky developments, Sino-South Korean relations will sustainably maintain their development. Considering the synergy effect of bilateral relations, two countries are standing on the opportunity to build a New Type of Sino-South Korean relations which would allow for resolution of conflicts and misunderstandings through dialogue and communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper maps out contemporary discourses of Chinese diplomacy that have proliferated under the aegis of 'major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics'. We examine how these narratives are underpinned by webs of relationality that see China promoting equal and win–win partnerships with other state actors, yet are also defined by hierarchical premises for such diplomatic engagements. These relational contradictions are most clearly manifested when we interrogate the spatial dynamics of China's diplomatic endeavours through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). By scrutinising the geopolitical imaginations, sites and scales associated with the BRI, we turn attention to three spatial tensions that are closely bounded up with the relational contradictions of Chinese diplomacy: 'win–win' diplomacy promoting a 'harmonious world' versus territorially based diplomacy; periphery diplomacy versus the global ambitions of BRI; and the centralisation versus decentralisation dimensions of Chinese diplomacy. This allows us to make sense of the multiplicity of descriptors that have been affixed to Chinese diplomacy, in order to underscore the 'work' they perform to bequeath (at times, divergent and contested) meanings to China's new foreign policy approach. Hence, a relational and spatial understanding of Chinese diplomacy, we argue, can reveal a more nuanced picture of the promises, potential and disjunctures of China's rapidly expanding geopolitical and diplomatic actions on the international stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction of a positive international image is profoundly correlated with advancing one's national interests abroad. Influencing foreign audiences and creating multisided links with countries of interest, is the main objective of public diplomacy. In the highly interconnected XXI century, countries have increasingly invested in that practice, assisted by major technological advancements. China is not an exception. The current paper will examine in which ways the latter conducts public diplomacy and through which actors. The study will also try to showcase the evolution and challenges that took place in this domain. Afterward, the case study of Greece will be considered, presenting the Chinese actors engaging in the country, the practices they use, and how the bilateral relationship has been affected. The essay will conclude with estimating the total effectiveness of the practices, possible challenges that exist, and several insights for future reference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: ‘Community of common destiny’, a new concept in China's diplomacy, has been increasingly used by the Chinese government, especially President Xi Jinping, on international occasions. Given the paucity of academic research on the concept, this paper aims to fill the gap and examine three aspects: meaning, motives and implications. Building upon the author's long observation of China's foreign policy, the paper argues that this concept of ‘community of common destiny’ is vague in meaning and loosely used by China. While initially proposed by China to mend ties with neighbouring states in the context of escalating territorial disputes, the concept constitutes part of China's long‐term strategy to maintain a peaceful ‘period of strategic opportunity’ in the first two to three decades of the 21st century to further develop itself. However, the ambiguity of the concept poses a main challenge for China to promote the acceptance of this concept by the developing world, let alone developed countries. This process demands more transparency, commitment and concrete actions from China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the normative aspect of Chinese foreign policy, whereby China strives to promote its norms, values, and rules in the international arena. Drawing on the relational theory of international politics, normative foreign policy (NFP) is re‐conceptualized by addressing the ontological foundation of international relations. In this light, China's role as an NFP actor is elaborated, based on its cultural traditions and international experience. The paper argues that in contrast with the West's emphasis on substantive norms of universality, Chinese norms are relational; they stress the importance of creating and maintaining ties in international relations. Furthermore, through its international relations, China has implemented an implicit and explicit normative agenda as part of its foreign policy. To further elaborate on this argument, China's multilateral regional diplomacy towards its neighboring regions, in particular Central Asia, is considered. It is concluded that China's NFP both challenges and is challenged by other actors through their constant interaction. This finding has broad implications for contemporary international relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, the PRC experienced one of its worst internal and international crises, in economic terms but above all in terms of image and prestige. The COVID-19 pandemic, in fact, came at a critical juncture in both China's internal and international relations, given that in recent years the communist Government has become a target of criticism on various internal and international issues. At the same time, it represented a crucial challenge for the CCP, while preparing the celebrations for its 100th anniversary and the achievement of its first «centenary goal». Beyond the undeniable effects on the country's economy, undoubtedly the most relevant effects were recorded in terms of image and reputation, as has emerged in different global opinion polls. Despite the Chinese authorities' highly effective management of the health emergency crisis after a first period of inaction, Beijing's authoritarian rule has again been an object of consistent criticism from liberal Western democracies, both on the intrusive methods adopted to cope with the crisis and its aggressiveness in imposing its official narrative regarding events. After analysing the effects of COVID-19 on China's global image, the paper focuses on the importance of «image» for China and its quest for prestige and image-building throughout history, with special reference to the communist experience. In the last part, it reflects on the opportunity that vaccine diplomacy may represent for China to recover its reputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the international system, states focus on the realization of their national interests, evaluating their diplomacy, and regularly their cultural diplomacy. For instance, China exercises its cultural diplomacy, in order to promote its foreign policy's goals. The present paper initially attempts to define the complex notion of cultural diplomacy, which is a multifactor way of promoting intercultural dialogue and augmenting states' soft power. In particular, China's cultural diplomacy was the most suitable case study since the Chinese state, following the Beijing's Olympic Games, has been reintroduced in the international audience. Its reintroduction was achieved by practicing its cultural diplomacy successfully, mostly with Confucius Institutes' function, while being dominant in the international financial system. In the case of China's foreign policy towards Africa, Chinese cultural diplomacy was accompanied by financial diplomacy and led to a Sino-African rapprochement and to the creation of the Forum on China-Africa cooperation. It is vital though to consider if Chinese foreign policy towards the African continent is successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Trans-Pasando Fronteras is the property of Rafael Silva Vega and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper summarizes the political directions Pyongyang has displayed in its nuclear diplomacy for the past ten years in a time sequential manner. The particular focus has been on Pyongyang's insistence on maintaining various options to choose from and its political ability to materialize them. The study has looked into North Korea's major policy transitions and the changes in position prominently demonstrated in its diplomacy with the U.S., China, and South Korea. During the period studied, Pyongyang has shown flexible attitudes, which include: 1) its radical transition from aggressive nuclear and missile capacity building to returning to the negotiation table; 2) its transition of the main issue from demanding corresponding security measures to demanding sanctions relief; 3) its transition of the up-front goal from showing off its retaliation deterrence capacity to strike the U.S. mainland to completion of nuclear war-fighting capabilities in the regional arena; and 4) its transition from hedging against China, focusing on its possible negotiation with the U.S.; to hedging against the U.S.; focusing on its possible closer ties with China. Such flexibility has been quite successful as a way to realize the strategic objectives that North Korea wanted to achieve in the first place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how Chinese elites understand the proper role of their nation vis-à-vis its 'periphery' and how this self-understanding shapes Chinese strategic policy toward neighboring states. It makes two specific arguments. First, after 2012 China began to understand itself as responsible for actively managing and shaping its periphery. Xi Jinping has overseen an evolution in China's neighborhood strategy that has changed from mere engagement to proactive efforts to shape regional order. Efforts to achieve this goal have come primarily through: institution-building and regional integration via the 'Belt and Road Initiative', strategic partnerships, normative binding, and developmental statecraft. Second, managing newly emerged power asymmetries between China and its neighbors is now a crucial task of Beijing's peripheral policy. The emerging China-led regional order relies on norms that are hierarchical, transactional, and reflect status distinctions. Xi Jinping's neighborhood strategy rests on an asymmetric bargain: respect China's core interests in exchange for benevolence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grand Strategy determines the ultimate goals and interests of a state. It has long-term effects on state policies. With the advent of the 21st century, China has emerged as a regional and global power. After entering the new era of development, China set specific goals and decided to achieve them, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. These goals are to convert China into a prosperous society, increase per capita income at par with developed states and realize modernization. In 2013, Xi Jinping announced China's Grand Strategy, while stating that the period extended to 2020 (and beyond) is the era of strategic opportunity for China. This article discusses China's Grand Strategy in the Asia- Pacific region. First, it conceptualizes Chinese strategy by focusing on its main objectives and interests. Secondly, it analyses its components while identifying how China is utilizing its economic, political, diplomatic, and security means to secure its interests in the region and maintain regional order. It also examines Chinese foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific region according to the institutions of international society described by Hadley Bull. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines China's motivations for trilateral aid cooperation in the context of its seemingly assertive diplomacy in recent years. Previously known for its preference for bilateral aid delivery, China, however, is increasingly conducting trilateral cooperation with western donor states and UN agencies. By employing constructivism and cognitive learning theories, this paper focuses on two perspectives: China's calculation of national interests and international engagement, and is structured around two case studies: UNDP's advisory role for China on development cooperation, and China–US trilateral aid cooperation. It argues that strategically, China is putting growing emphasis on its identity as a growing great power in the development sector, using trilateral cooperation to build its global image. Technically, China's four-decade long external engagement has promoted changes in its ideas about aid cooperation, thus reinforcing its desire for cognitive learning to improve its aid performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses KeyGraph, a chance discovery tool, to examine China's soft power and identify potential and possible future research topics. The experimental design examines 2,400 articles related to China's soft power. This examination demonstrates that current soft power studies on China focus more on the aspects of "promoting cultural development," "facilitating international influence," "safeguarding core value concepts," and "developing soft power with Chinese characteristics." Regarding the future evolution of soft power-related studies in China, this study concludes that several aspects remain the most promising issues for future study: cultural propaganda refinement, foreign policy adjustment, ideology entrenchment measures in the form of ideological and political education to propagate government policies and to strengthen civic control, and innovation of scientific development concepts. The identification of these areas will contribute to the field of Chinese soft power studies by serving as a valuable reference for future scholars. By observing the development and tendencies of Chinese soft power studies within the various stages of each topic's evolution, this paper extensively covers the applicable aspects of the fields of culture, diplomacy, politics, and economics. The conclusions derived from this study highlight the current status and possible future course of development of soft power-related studies in China by concerned domestic institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses a largely overlooked actor in China's foreign relations, the International Department of the Communist Party of China (ID-CPC). Using publicly available documentation, we systematically analyze the patterns of the CPC's external relations since the early 2000s. Building on an intense travel diplomacy, the ID-CPC maintains a widely stretched network to political elites across the globe. The ID-CPC's engagement is not new; but since Xi Jinping took office, the CPC has bolstered its efforts to reach out to other parties. We find that party relations not only serve as an additional channel to advance China's foreign policy interests. Since President Xi has come to power, party relations also emerged as a key instrument to promote China's vision for reforming the global order. Moreover, China increasingly uses the party channel as a vehicle of authoritarian learning by sharing experiences of its economic modernization and authoritarian one-party regime. The cross-regional analysis of the CPC's engagement with other parties helps us to better understand the role of the CPC in Chinese foreign policy-making, pointing to a new research agenda at the intersection of China's foreign relations, authoritarian diffusion, and transnational relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why is the East Asia region so important for the European Union? What are its interests and what challenges does it face? How it approaches its main strategic partners in the region, the People's Republic of China and Japan? The current paper is trying to answer these questions providing an analysis of the foreign policy of the EU in the region as it has formed throughout the last decade. It focuses mainly on a brief review of the literature and the research progress which has been accomplished so far with the purpose of identifying new challenges, weaknesses and factors that need to be included in future research. In the first part, there will be an effort to describe the interests, priorities and challenges of the Union. In the second part, there will be an analysis and description of the EU foreign policy towards its two major partners in East Asia, highlighting the main elements of their bilateral relationships. Lastly, there will be an effort to provide the future trends and possible actions to be taken by the EU, in order to further consolidate its presence in the area via a multifaceted strategy as presented at the EU Global Strategy of 2016. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origins of the Foreign Inspectorate of the Chinese Maritime Customs are well known; the succession crises after Inspector Generals Hart and Aglen well covered in the literature; and the Maze Inspectorate has received a good deal of attention. However, one significant feature of the newly opened Inspectorate Archives is the weight of post-1937 material it contains, and the light it can throw upon the administration of Lester Knox Little, inspector general in 1943-50, on the Japanese-controlled Customs in occupied China, and on the erosion of foreign and especially of British dominance in the service. This paper outlines the rocky transition from Sir Frederick Maze to Little (and in Japanese-occupied China to Inspector General Kishimoto Hirokichi), and explores the impact of this transition and of the Sino-Japanese war on the position of the Customs and on its activities between 1941 and 1945. The Customs found a role for itself in unoccupied China, and remained a useful tool for the Guomindang state, although British diplomats surrendered their long-held claim that a British national should run the service. What preserved a foreign role in the Customs after Pearl Harbor was not the support of foreign diplomats, but the relations of senior staff with high-ranking Chinese government officials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops a social identity approach to diplomatic negotiations that links research on gender and culture in negotiations by treating gender as an analytic category. By critically interrogating literature on diplomacy, negotiation, and masculinity in China and the United States and comparing hegemonic forms of masculinity and other “ideal type” gender and negotiator models, this suggests that in each culture: (1) dominant negotiating styles (generally integrative—“win–win”—or distributive—“win–lose”) parallel dominant ideal typical males, (2) informal negotiating styles (reliance on personal relationships) parallel subordinate ideal typical females, and (3) creative negotiating tactics are possible by code-switching (changing relationship type and strategy style), or creatively reinterpreting existing models to address negotiation goals. This paper seeks to contribute to the literature by linking previously separate but related subfields (“gender and negotiation” and “culture and negotiation” research), adding to existing research frameworks, and creating the opportunity for improved international diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current global context, with prominent multilateralism and multipolarity trends, China is seeing a rise in comprehensive strength and influence on the international stage. China has always upheld mutual respect, mutual benefits, and win-win situations for its diplomatic strategies and has launched the Belt and Road Initiative to actively unite neighboring countries and regions for common development and advancement. Person-to-person diplomacy is an important part of foreign affairs work, of which overseas Chinese are a force to be reckoned with. Overseas Chinese are also descendants of the Chinese nation, so it is easier to communicate with them concerning culture, language, characters, and ideas. Therefore, with Chinese in Indonesia as the research subjects, this paper provides a case study of the Confucius Institute jointly built by Xihua University and Universitas Sebelas Maret (Sebelas Maret University, UNS) to specifically explore how to expand person-to-person diplomacy, unite overseas Chinese, promote China-foreign exchanges and cooperation, and enhance mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples with overseas Chinese as the bridge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study takes the argument that nontraditional security (NTS) diplomacy can provide the essential window of opportunity for China and Japan to move beyond traditional diplomatic history. However, NTS issues have become dominant in reforming bilateral relations between China and Japan, though there is no fixed edge in nontraditional security. To reveal, it explores the NTS diplomacy with the importance of nontraditional security issues as substance for the expansion and development of two leading economies. The non-military and transboundary character of NTS threats have constrained courtiers to pursue more substantial levels of security integration. This study argues that the significance of NTS diplomacy is twofold; first, it avoids sensitive historical hostilities and finds common ground for cooperation on NTS threats that traditional approach of diplomacy apparently is unable to envisage. Second, security interdependence approach can turn traditional diplomatic relations of China and Japan into a more conciliatory and prominent path. While NTS threats like natural disasters, environment degradation, and economy crisis have been taken as case studies to provide empirical evidence and significant opportunities for both rival states. This article, to some extent, describes the dynamic between traditional, nontraditional, and nontraditional security diplomacy through China-Japan relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultural heritage is used to promote political ideas and economic initiatives these days. It is not only a political construct but also a useful tool in both reaching domestic political goals (for instance, building one's national identity) and developing international relationships (building soft power). This case study focuses on the cooperation of public and private institutions over the project of revitalisation of the Chinese Alley and building a Chinese garden in the Royal Łazienki Museum in Poland between 2012 and 2014. Using the concept of 'heritage diplomacy' coined by Tim Winter (2015), this paper analyses the relationship between the key actors that participated in the project and those who have been benefi tting from its results. The analysis shows how cultural heritage becomes an element of strategy in foreign relations in order to strengthen international and interinstitutional relations and how the political actors benefi t from the outcomes of conservation and promotion of cultural heritage. It also makes it possible to identify the motivation of various actors while engaging in conservation of heritage on domestic and international levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's new Silk Road policy, titled 'One Belt, One Road,' signals a proactive turn in China's regional policy towards Central and West Asia. The policy has two dimensions: First, China aims to revitalize the old Silk Road exchange of goods, ideas, and people with trade, energy, and transportation projects. Second, armed with these new connections, China aims to redefine the territories the old Silk Road encompasses as a region in the contemporary international system. Turkey, as one of the countries at the westernmost end of the historic Silk Road, and one of the target countries of China's new Silk Road diplomacy, welcomes the increasing economic and technological exchange with China. Establishing better contacts with China fits suitably in Turkey's new foreign policy orientation. While the foreign policies of the two countries seem to be compatible, Turkish domestic political dynamics and public opinion hinder further engagement between the two ends of the Silk Road. The negative public opinion towards China manifests itself in the form of media coverage, protests and lobbying and, at times, it derails bilateral relations. This paper assesses the prospects for bilateral relations in the light of these developments. The paper starts with a historical analysis of Sino-Turkish relations and proceeds with various dimensions of the current relations. Then, it provides an analysis of various public opinion surveys in order to grasp the nature of the Turkish public opinion towards China, and it offers a media framing analysis in order to decipher the specific ways the image of China is constructed in Turkish public opinion. The last part of the paper discusses the domestic political actors that have a role in the perceptions and policies toward China in Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes that Nepal's unalterable geographic position does not necessarily have to be disadvantageous for Nepal, and the state needs to get over the syndromes of land-lockedness and smallness. Sorting out its domestic matters is historically sound diplomacy. The foreign policy of Nepal as regards India and China needs to focus not only on a small state's survival strategies, but also in order to thrive Nepal needs to upgrade its diplomatic faculties and make use of regional forums such as SAARC for reinforcing its neighbourhood comity and economic diplomacy. Small states like Nepal can influence the foreign policies of superpowers like India and China. In this milieu, the paper charts out the constraints and prospects of the relations of Nepal with its immediate neighbours that has, to date, been grounded in the conventional notion of equidistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The PLA's role in Beijing's foreign policy-making process is a closed book but it is a key research topic in our study of Chinese diplomacy. This paper argues that generally the PLA abides by a fine division of labor with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in managing Beijing's international pursuits. The civilians are in charge of China's generic foreign affairs and daily diplomacy. The Central Military Commission (CMC) is responsible for security/military-related foreign affairs and defines the bottom-line for employing force in conflicts. Institutionally the PLA's role is more directional than detailed and is often behind the scenes. This complicates our research of the subject matter, as the line between this division of labor is thin over many diplomatic issues. Often times it is hard to demarcate where Beijing's normal diplomacy ends and where security/military dynamics begin. This paper adopts a two-layered analysis on civil–military interaction on foreign and security affairs: the broad consensus of CCP–PLA leaders on CCP regime stability at a time of drastic domestic change and world pressure; and the PLA's directional role in China's security/military-related foreign affairs under a generic civilian guidance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Vying for high-speed railway projects overseas has become a prominent feature of China's diplomacy in recent years, including in Southeast Asia. These efforts have been widely depicted within the premises of the China Threat narrative – as a part of Beijing's agenda to alter the power balance in Southeast Asia at the expense of the economic, political, and security well-being of countries in the region. This paper challenges such interpretations and concludes that these projects do not have either the intention or capacity to facilitate such a hostile and far-reaching agenda toward the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In its foreign policy towards the Iranian nuclear programme, China is unwilling to join the partially harsh anti-Iran rhetoric of the US and the EU3. China has averted the imposition of sanctions and only abstained from its veto power as a permanent UNSC member after considerable diplomatic persuasion by 'the West'. Beijing was cautious not to spoil its image as a 'responsible Great Power', walking a diplomatic tightrope in balancing a pragmatic-commercial approach to business in Iran and mollifying Western security concerns related to the Iranian nuclear programme, following the tradition of Deng Xiaoping's doctrine of 'maintaining a low profile'. Increasingly, however, China is conveying a more assertive foreign policy and is no longer hiding its strategic interests. This paper argues that with the EU3 being at the forefront of nuclear diplomacy with Iran, disagreements with China over the EU's recent sanctions policy against Iran can, but need not, be a step in the direction of EU-China strategic alienation in the search for long-term solutions to the Iranian nuclear stalemate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rise of China is the primary cause of changing strategic dynamics in Asia. China's growing economic, military and political weight is shaping regional and individual destinies of its neighbours, particularly in Southeast Asia. Despite the academic debate over its future, Chinese influence is burgeoning and this has major implications for other Asian powers such as India, Japan, Russia, and the offshore balancer, the United States. This paper examines Chinese strategic gains in the Southeast Asian region in the areas of trade, regional diplomacy and cross-border connectivity. It also seeks to understand why India, unlike China, has not managed to integrate as closely with Southeast Asia despite using policies similar to that of China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rise of China is arguably one of the most significant challenges to the existing geopolitical order. Responding to calls for an integrated approach to geopolitics and corporate strategy, we employ interdisciplinary insights from international relations, international business, and nonmarket strategy to explore how the rapidly changing geopolitical environment rooted in the U.S.–China rivalry affects corporate diplomacy of multinational enterprises. We define corporate diplomacy as the nonmarket strategies of firms that respond to and shape country diplomacy and international relations. We (a) examine how the U.S.–China rivalry has led to a transition in country diplomacy away from liberalism and toward realism, (b) evaluate the broad consequences of that transition for corporate diplomacy, and (c) develop a framework to assess corporate diplomacy under realism through the dual lens of geopolitical realism and institutional multiplicity. Specifically, firms must address global governance gaps (multilateral level), contradictory stakeholder pressures (bilateral level), a liability of origin (in the host country), and the rising importance of alignment with national security priorities (at home). We show that in the new geopolitical world rooted more heavily in realism, active corporate diplomacy remains important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper has three main research objectives. First, we define a country's image through its principal dimensions, channels of communication (including the Public Diplomacy) and impact on the international relations framework. Second, we underline the specific determinants of China's image worldwide. The literature review emphasizes this country's distinctive "assets and liabilities", taking into account the role played by the political system in the Chinese economy, external factors, associated with the generally accepted norms and values, the geographical distance that hinders the direct contact and mutual understanding. Third, on the basis of recent studies, we analyze how China is perceived in different regions/countries and demonstrate that the economic rationale of international relations is stronger than that induced by a partner country's image. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last decade, the subject of China-Africa relations provokes special attention on a global level in view of the new dimensions of Beijing's involvement in the world. China is facing the challenge to adapt to new geopolitical realities and the measures undertaken and planned to improve the national situation transform the country's diplomacy. They also cause large spillover effects on international relations. In the light of these new developments, the paper explores the principal dimensions of China's contacts and cooperation with Africa and their repercussions for the foreign policy of the country and especially the resulting geopolitical implications. The research work outlines the conceptual frame of the attempts of the African countries to meet the challenges posed by this relationship. The analysis focuses on China-Africa partnership, looking through the prism of the geopolitical paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper probes China's official political concept of "Major Country Diplomacy with Chinese Characteristics" to argue that the boundaries of legitimate state action have been dramatically expanded since Xi Jinping came to power in 2012. Building on Patrick Jackson's transactional social constructivism, I place the causal mechanism in China's new assertiveness in seminal changes to how Chinese elites legitimize their country's role in global politics. Drawing upon elite speeches, Party documents, and Chinese-language scholarship between 2013 and 2019, I show how new legitimation strategies are used to justify China's effort to proactively reform international order, engage in ideological competition with the West, and assume greater responsibility for global affairs in accordance with its elevated power and status. The boundaries of action sanctioned by this new discourse are likely to persist in the short to medium term, with implications for regional order in Asia and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Contexto Internacional is the property of Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Relacoes Internacionais and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A recent surge in studies on high-level leader diplomacy has the potential to evolve into a fruitful research field. While the current literature predominantly focuses on the leader visits of two great powers, the U.S. and China, this emerging field requires both broadening and deepening in its scope. We lack data on leader visits from the vast majority of countries, and many existing hypotheses do not adequately explain the determinants in various cases. The more countries that are covered and the more refined our hypotheses become, the more insightful this field will be in understanding interactions among states and international organizations. This article aims to present the current state of the literature on leader visits and suggests potential areas of interest for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes the relationship between the People’s Republic of China and India, 'with an emphasis on economic cooperation and political rivalry. Its aim is to identify the main points ofcooperation and conflict in their mutual relations. After a brief overview of the history of relations between both powers, the paper will analyze the current status of their relationship. Following a period ofdifficult relations during the cold 'war, there is a growing trend of cooperation between the two countries. Special attention will be paid to their activity in the BRICS group. The opportunities and obstacles of this relationship, as well as its effect on the surrounding region and on the developing countries in general, 'will be ascertained. Another emphasized issue will be the security rivalry between the two powers, as seen from the alleged Chinese “String of Pearls ” project and India’s reaction to it. The main methods used in the writing of this paper are historical analysis of the sources and description based on the current state of affairs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]