(Re)positioning Yunnan: region and nation in contemporary provincial narratives.

This paper identifies imaginings since the early 1990s to reposition Yunnan from a peripheral province in the PRC to the centre of various regional constructs which involve territories across the PRC's borders, primarily in what are now known as southeast and south Asia. These narratives, which change over time and between actors, are justified using Yunnan's past linkages with territories along the ‘southern silk road’ and through a naturalized presentation of its geographical location and characteristics, are based on the premise of good neighbourly relations, and are driven by imperatives of development. They find practical expression in provincial engagement with regional institutions, and in infrastructure and other programmes. However, the imaginings to reposition the province which these narratives spell out are at the same time constrained by the demands of territorial integrity and national security: a desire not to compromise Yunnan's national belonging. The paper concludes by commenting on implications for understanding ‘China's borderlands’ and their global interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]