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How did Chinese leaders Deng Xiaoping and Zhao Ziyang feel about Hong Kong? The existing literature has tended to see the Sino-British negotiations over the future of Hong Kong through the economic lens favoured by the British side and described the Chinese side as primarily motivated by nationalism. However, 'nationalism' remains a vague concept in need of further definition. This paper focuses on the Chinese side of the negotiation table. It unpacks what 'nationalism' meant to Deng and Zhao within the context of the negotiations by examining three interrelated components: history, identity and emotion. This paper then analyses how the Chinese side used history, identity and emotion strategically during the negotiations, focusing on the September 1982 leaders' meetings as a case study. Adopting a constructivist lens, this paper examines historical documents against frameworks and theories from the social sciences, producing an interdisciplinary analysis of Chinese negotiation tactics. It unravels how China's leaders used the country's past to broadcast the Party's stance to the people, bolster their leadership position and win the advantage over Britain in the Hong Kong negotiations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the successful containment of COVID-19 in Wuhan in late March 2020, China had implemented a nationwide highly stringent and restrictive zero-COVID policy to manage the pandemic until the sudden swift away from it in early December 2022. How did the Chinese Communist Party discursively construct it as a 'normal' and legitimate policy? Using interpretivism and poststructuralist political theory, this paper examines how Chinese political elites constructed a discourse of danger for the COVID pandemic, with the dominant discursive narratives full of xenophobic and nationalist languages. The discourse framed 'foreigners' as 'threats' to Chinese people's health, advocated that China should rely on home-made vaccines and medicines and, more importantly, argued that the Chinese Communist rule demonstrates 'institutional superiority' over Western governance. This xenophobic and nationalist discourse has lingered on after the dismantling of the zero-COVID policy. There are grounds for us to concern whether China is seeking self-reliance rather than integrating itself with the world. A Chinese decoupling from the world—a nationalist self-reliance policy similar with that in the Mao era—is not unthinkable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a well-acknowledged central economic and diplomatic policy of the Chinese government, which was proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013. This paper intends to discover the relationship between the public diplomacy narratives of the BRI and its implementation. By using content analysis, this paper analyzes Chinese President Xi's speeches from 2013 to 2020 about the BRI, as well as official statements of the Chinese central government. It identifies the public diplomacy narratives of the BRI: an assemblage of constantly changing policy settings that accommodates various economic and political interests. Also, this paper draws on differences between countries joining the BRI or not, and several case studies to elucidate the implementation of the BRI. Different from repetitive literature that explores either the BRI narratives or its implementation, this paper contributes by combining and comparing the two. Despite positive interpretations of the BRI the Chinese government has adopted, the paper argues that there are no deceptive tricks with skeletons in the closet of the Chinese government, as the BRI public diplomacy narratives are, in general, consistent with its implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is highly development-oriented and appeals to developing countries whose wish is to catch up with developed economies. China has called for co-construction of the BRI with all and sundry, particularly with African countries, which it has considered important and strategic in actualizing the BRI project. The call for co-construction echoes well with the African partners, who are keen on leveraging the BRI for their own development. Tied to China's status as a rising economic power, both partners have agreed to align the BRI with the African Union's development agenda for complementary and beneficial development. Our paper revealed that although the call for co-construction of the BRI is a welcomed initiative, there are potential setbacks that abound, and therefore offered strategies for responding to China's call for co-construction of the BRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ever since China has formally joined the WHO-backed global COVID-19 vaccine initiative known as COVAX, there is a presumed notion that China's vaccine diplomacy will make a significant contribution to the international public good and thus uplift Beijing's role as the rule-maker of international order. To scrutinize this, the paper asks if China succeeded in proliferating its weaponized vaccine policy to obtain maximum diplomatic gains and soft power projection to intensify its international image, geopolitical power, and domestic politico legitimacy. The authors argue that despite its vaccine diplomacy demonstrated the robust governance capacity and responsibility to be a great power. Yet, Beijing's geopolitical influence and international image are significantly overrated and not enough to play a more prominent role in the global power fulcrum/equilibrium. On the contrary, China enjoys a leading position on the domestic political front. Its successful portrayal of China's vaccine provision in the global market and remarkable configuration to leverage a deep-rooted nationalism has fundamentally provided China with a powerful rationale to divert its public's attention from Beijing's earlier inadequate handling of the outbreak. The evaluation of the paper reveals that China's vaccine diplomacy's influence in promoting international image and geopolitics is limited but has successfully stabilized its domestic political environment and enhanced its domestic legitimacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The weaponization of racialized imagery has been a common feature of geopolitical contestation in contemporary history. The paper critically examines the historical genesis of Sinophobic narratives, which have been common features of the big power geopolitical contestation in the Pacific. The globalization of capitalism in the nineteenth century and the West's attempts to penetrate the Chinese market and exploitation of its resources led to tension, skirmishes and wars. The myth of racial European superiority and corresponding inferiority of the Chinese was weaponized as an ideological justification for colonial domination, exploitation of cheap labour and appropriation of China's resources and wealth. In recent years, the Sinophobic paranoia has been exacerbated by China's Belt and Road initiative, a strategy at global economic and technological supremacy to counter the West's dominance. This competition for global hegemony is played out in various parts of the world and the Pacific included. The paper critically discusses various historical factors associated with Sinophobia in the context of the USA, France and Australia and how these have influenced these countries' contemporary approaches to Chinese expansionism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper employed a geo-economics approach to investigate the twofold Chinese geopolitical intentions behind the execution of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. China financed the CPEC project to overcome energy security and terrorism in Xinjiang. The paper examines the correlation between economic development and security objectives by answering the following key questions. (a) Whether CPEC has the potential to alleviate China's energy and security dilemma? (b) To what extent CPEC can act as a lever to achieve security interests? The paper argues that geopolitical and geo-security concerns motivate Chinese leadership to use the geo-economics approach. The $65 billion investment in the construction of CPEC has mammoth potential to revitalize the Chinese dream to achieve security through economic and infrastructure development. For Beijing, infrastructure and economic development along the corridor belt would guarantee peace and security in Xinjiang and an overland route of CPEC for energy supplies will circumvent the Malacca dilemma alleviating the threat to the Chinese energy lifeline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars and analysts have sought to clarify the Chinese Communist Party's motives for carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a series of infrastructure investments in countries across the globe. While many emphasize Beijing's geopolitical interests, this paper argues that the BRI should also be understood as a large-scale effort to create business activities for Chinese companies and workers outside of China. We define the contours of this "building out" strategy by analyzing the stages that typify BRI projects: project selection, project financing, project construction, and post-construction operation and management. Our analysis draws, in large part, on data that we have compiled from a sample of BRI projects. After showing macro-level trends in the data, we offer three in-depth case studies to clarify the underlying mechanisms at work. Our findings suggest that BRI projects are engineered to direct finance and construction bids to Chinese companies, which are typically state-owned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The heavy-metal pollution of the consumer-electronics industry has been a serious environmental problem in China. Since 2010, Chinese ENGOs have taken a few measures to address this challenge. Under the influence of other stakeholders, Chinese ENGOs have only played a limited role. To further explore the potential of domestic ENGOs, it would be necessary to understand how they have approached the heavy-metal challenge and why their contribution has been moderate. By using the method of "process tracing," this paper presents a preliminary attempt to trace and generate localized knowledge of Chinese ENGOs' approach and the influence of other stakeholders. Specifically, this paper divides the actions of Chinese ENGOs into the following three phases: initial participation, progressive involvement of MNCs, and collaborative tracking and online disclosure. Then, it traces the participation of Chinese mass media, domestic suppliers, local governments, and communities. It argues that the following six constraining factors have contributed to shaping the limited role of those Chinese ENGOs: (1) the complexity of the consumer-electronics supplier network; (2) Chinese ENGOs' lack of leverage on MNCs; (3) Chinese ENGOs' shortage of financial and human resources under a broad agenda; (4) domestic mass media's lack of long-term interest; (5) reluctant participation of Chinese suppliers and local governments; and (6) conflicting interests within local communities. Three policy options for further exploring the potential of Chinese ENGOs are discussed, including financial and technical support, further engagement of international ENGOs, and supportive policy-making and interregional coordination by local governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's burgeoning economic and security activities abroad have given rise to suspicions and criticisms of its intentions. As Buddhism is a shared faith and heritage among many Chinese; an integral part of national identities of Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia; a proud legacy in India; and a major religion in Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Mongolia, Korea, and Japan, winning over the trust and friendship of neighboring Buddhist countries has emerged as an important Chinese diplomatic initiative, especially under the current Xi Jinping leadership's enterprise to revive the Silk Road. Having over 245 million Buddhists, 28,000 Buddhist monasteries, 16,000 temples, and 240,000 Buddhist monks and nuns makes the promotion of Buddhism a rich source of soft-power, or "soul power," for China, generated from its heavy investments in building Buddhist institutions and engaging Buddhist groups in these countries. However, there are external and domestic challenges in using Buddhism as a Chinese foreign policy vehicle. The paper analyzes what the objectives of China's Buddhist diplomacy are; which personnel, organizations, or state bureaus in China make China's Buddhist diplomacy; how is it carried out; what the targeted institutions and personnel in the affected countries are; the reactions from these countries; and the extent to which a Communist regime is able to carry out its promotion of Buddhism in Asia despite its professed atheism. The analysis is conducted through the spectrum of two major perspectives in international relations literature: neo-realism and constructivism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2004 was the year when the Japanese public's affinity with China dropped dramatically, to 37.6 %, due to anti-Japan riots in China. Now more than 70 % of the Japanese public does not feel an affinity with China. How could such a strong anti-Chinese sentiment influence Japan's policy toward China? This paper considers this question by examining Japan's decision-making process on terminating the much-criticized yen loans to China. Yen loans are a type of Official Development Assistance (ODA) provided by the Japanese government to countries lacking sufficient funds for economic development. China is one of the top yen loan borrowers, and the loans have contributed to China's economic growth and increasing openness. However, in March 2005, Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura told Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing that Japan intended to phase out the yen loans before the 2008 Beijing Olympics and reached an agreement on the matter. Two-and-a-half years later, Japan terminated its yen loans to China, as the foreign ministers had agreed. Through mainly firsthand documents and interviews with government officials, this paper will clarify the following two points: (1) While it is true that the Japanese government significantly reduced its yen loan package to China from 2001 onward due to domestic criticism of China, as pointed out by previous studies, it was not planning to terminate the yen loans as of summer 2004. Instead, the Japanese government was contemplating how to keep providing yen loans to China; (2) Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, who was appointed in September 2004, had pushed for the termination of yen loans to China only after anti-Chinese sentiment rose dramatically in summer 2004, because he felt that continuing the much-criticized yen loans would not benefit stable Japan-China relations. This paper sheds light on the background of the termination of yen loans to China, a major milestone in postwar Japan-China relations that had been unclear until now. Having said this, the more important point of this paper may be that it also shows the influence of strong anti-Chinese sentiment on Japan's policies toward China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An emergency management system is an important part of the current national governance system. Since the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, China's emergency management agencies have been reformed many times, and the emergency management system has been significantly improved in continuous development. China's emergency management can be divided into four stages from 1949 to now, forming three generations of the emergency management system. This paper introduces the organizational characteristics of China's emergency management in four stages, expounds on the main characteristics of the three generations of the emergency management system, and puts forward some key points of improving China's emergency management system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to examine the People's Republic of China's (China) self-defined national identity and the consequences on China's ethnic relations with its ethnic minorities. This paper argues that China's identity is equated with the identity and culture of its ethnic Han Chinese majority—a narrative originally constructed by the Chinese state which its ethnic Han Chinese majority since indulges in. However, this hegemonic narrative is at the root of interethnic issues and tensions in China today, as further ethnic tensions stem from the resistance of ethnic minorities against Sinicization and the imposition of this "Chinese" identity against them. These phenomena thus both indicate what I term a weak "internal soft power appeal" of Han Chinese Confucian culture for ethnic minorities living in the PRC, and imply that China must adopt a different, more inclusive national identity if it were to maintain ethnic stability in the long term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2019, Trilateral Cooperation celebrated its 20th anniversary. As China, Japan and South Korea are close trade partners, economic cooperation is a focal point in Trilateral Cooperation. This paper endeavours to examine and explain China's approach towards the institutionalization of trilateral economic cooperation from 1999 to 2019. The findings indicate that China was supportive towards institutionalizing trilateral economic cooperation, but it was less proactive in recent years. This is explained by two factors, namely, (a) the declining economic interdependence between China and other member states and (b) the shift in China's regional strategy with the introduction of new regional initiatives by China, especially the Belt and Road Initiative. The findings of this study cast doubt on the critical juncture approach and the alternative explanation on balancing which perceives China's participation in Trilateral Cooperation primarily through the lens of Sino-US relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews several of the key issues that underlie the development and expansion of think tanks in China from both a domestic and international perspective. Substantively, the review focuses on the need to develop criminological think tanks in China due to the well-documented relationship between rapid urbanization, social displacement, and crime. Though work on urbanization, social disorganization, and crime has existed for over half a decade in Western criminology, it suffers from a lack of research outside of the Western and usually more specifically American, cultural context. To advance this call for research, the paper identifies 14 generative research programs in the areas of the Routine Activities Theory, Social Bonds Theory, and Institutional Anomie Theory pursuable by Chinese criminological think tanks. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of some potential barriers to the successful production and dissemination of criminological research in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Turmoil in the Taiwan Strait addresses Ambassador Wellington Koo's role in Chinese foreign policy from 1953 to 1956 and his relevance in the larger Cold War context. In particular, it focuses on Koo's involvement in the 1954 Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty and the 1955 Dachen Islands Crisis. This paper argues that, although Koo accomplished a fair amount during this time, he would have encountered fewer professional obstacles had he not represented Chiang Kai-Shek, who had become a controversial figure by the mid-1950s. At the same time, one can conclude that Koo creatively used media and meetings with statesmen abroad to shore up support for the Republic of China during this turbulent decade. This article attempts to provide another perspective on Koo, who has traditionally been understudied in the West. Furthermore, this work seeks to add a meaningful contribution to the historiography on cross-strait relations-particularly in the contemporary era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the relationship between anti-Japanese popular nationalism and China's approach towards Japan amid Sino-Japanese political tension from 2001 to mid-2006. Among various factors that may affect the relationship, this research focuses on the interaction between the government and the public expressions of anti-Japanese nationalism in China. Throughout most of this period, Sino-Japanese political relations were seriously strained by historical, territorial and other controversial issues, which stirred up anti-Japanese sentiment in China. However, it was only between 2003 and the spring of 2005 that mass anti-Japanese protests were allowed, or at least tolerated, by the Chinese authorities and played a role in Beijing's handling of Japan-related controversies. The paper examines China's domestic political situation during the leadership transition from the third to fourth generation of leaders, which it claims drove the Chinese government's lenient response to popular anti-Japanese protests and enhanced the prospects for popular nationalism to affect the government's approach towards Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's impressive growth has been accompanied by huge rural-urban divide and social sacrifice of many including rural-urban migrants. Reflecting on the documentary Last Train Home () by Lixin Fan, this paper identifies and examines the life of rural-urban migrants in China in terms of poverty-reduction, child-care, education and equal opportunities for a better life. By comparing the seemingly difficult and tragic life of the Zhang family against statistical facts, it shows that their suffering and struggles are common to most migrants. In essence, by creating an interactive dialogue between the film and the economic reality in China, this paper highlights the severe constraints on the Chinese peasantry and discusses the implications of limited choices and social injustice towards rural-urban migrants. It argues that the inequality in opportunities and the lack of social care for migrants has created huge social cleavage that not only reduces social welfare but may also impede further development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years an increasing number of works on EU international actorness have begun to focus on notions of “normative, value-driven external policy”. However, the majority of these works tend to uncritically analyse EU foreign policy without considering its internal complexity and the existing national, supranational and intergovernmental dynamics. This paper first sheds light on these issues by proposing an original theoretical and analytical framework to study European, rather than merely EU, normative foreign policy. Secondly, this paper attempts to empirically apply such a framework in the specific case of European human rights promotion in China. What emerges is that in the case of China, and Asia more broadly, Europe appears more as a normative trap, where the interaction of EU institutions and member states originate policies not in line with the EU human rights normative basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Senkaku/Diaoyu islands dispute has caused tensions among China, Japan, and Taiwan for decades. Although the Taiwanese government keeps a low profile on the dispute, the issue has flared up online discussion among Taiwan's netizens. Many consider Taiwanese people more pro-Japan than other countries in East Asia, as elder generation living on the island shares nostalgia toward Japan, and as its younger generation charmed by Japanese manga and anime, let alone Taiwan being the top donor to Japan's 311 earthquake. In this vein, Taiwanese people should accommodate well with Japan. However, Senkaku/Diaoyu islands dispute may tell another story. The act of Japanese government to nationalize Senkaku/Diaoyu islands in 2012 has provoked anger among its neighbor countries. Are Taiwanese people in favor of Japan's stance on Senkaku/Diaoyu islands dispute due to the attachment for Japan or the other way round? This paper applies text mining technique and sentiment analysis to the digital data of Taiwan's largest bulletin board system station-PTT-established by college students and extracts postings concerning Senkaku/Diaoyu islands dispute in the past 4 years (2009~2012). By this bottom-up approach, we aim to examine Taiwan's netizens' emotion toward the two hegemonies-i.e., Japan and China-and to see whether the strong attachment to Japan has any impact on netizens' opinions on the dispute. [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]

In the Xi Jinping era, China is actively implementing the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) around the globe. Under the BRI, infrastructure development has become the main agenda for China to create connectivity. One of the infrastructure projects in the energy sector is the Nam Ou Cascade Hydropower Project. The Nam Ou River is a tributary of the Mekong River located in Laos and borders China. For Laos, this project is part of their vision to be "The battery of Southeast Asia." Therefore, this article attempts to explain that Nam Ou Hydropower has implications for China's dominance in the Mekong region. The circle hydro-hegemony is used as the conceptual framework for analyzing the phenomenon. This article also applies a qualitative method with secondary data. The article shows that the Nam Ou Cascade Hydropower Project in Laos elevates China's influence in the Mekong region. By actively pulling and pushing its neighbors into cooperation, China exercises its power as an upstream country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper tries to make an assessment of the borderland regions of China and India with a focus on Xinjiang, Tibet, Kashmir and the Indian Northeast. The paper looks at the conflict in India and China's periphery, how these conflicts have evolved with time and how they have changed their character with the passage of time, from the 1950s until the present day. After looking at some background, the paper primarily focusses on three key issues which impact on all four of the conflicts: the rise of ethnic nationalism, the impact of external forces on the conflict and the human rights situation. After making an assessment of the political situation, the paper looks at the areas of similarity and differences between the four regions. Methodologically, a bottom-up approach was taken and in-depth unstructured interviews were carried out with people from the conflict zones that the paper considers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The escalating rivalry between the US and China in the photovoltaics industry has brought increased attention to Chinese nationalism towards the industry. This study examines how media narration and group behavior are associated with nationalist responses to China's photovoltaics, using 4558 comments and 11 video texts related to the geopolitical issues of China's photovoltaics on the Bilibili platform. By applying ordinal logit, OLS, and ARMA regression analyses, this study finds that: (1) Nationalism in the comment zone tends to be positively associated with media's narration of the West's crackdown on China's photovoltaics, blaming of Western countries and labeling of the West as a hegemonic force compared to China. (2) Nationalism in the comment zone tends to be negatively associated with the media's narration of China's photovoltaics' strengths and achievements and its counterstrike against the West. (3) Media's narration of China PV's deficiencies and its capitalism-socialism narrative framework are insignificant to nationalism in the comment zone. (4) A cycle of conformity and anticonformity of nationalism emerges over time, demonstrating the strengthening of internal consistency and divergence among various internet groups. While complementing the existing literature, this study provides policy insights into controlling cyber nationalism by reducing blaming discourses, identity antithesis in narrations, and polarization of political sentiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are different driving forces behind Chinese foreign policy decision-making. Norms, principles, and interests and the subtle combinations of them, I argue in this paper, are the major driving forces on the input side, while the domestic situation of a specific country and international pressure undercut China's policy deliberations. By contrast, the form of government of a specific country under discussion is not an important variable. In this paper, I use China's policy toward Myanmar as a case study. The findings prove that the integration of norms, principle and practical interests has formed the powerful impetus that drives China's policies toward Myanmar. Among these factors, the interests China has identified in general and stability on its 'doorstep' in particular play a dominant role, while the norm of human security and the principle of non-interference are embedded in its policy deliberations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does the rise of China present a threat or an opportunity for Southeast Asia? One of the most revealing arenas in which this will be determined will be within the context of regional institution-building. For a region that is perennially associated with under-institutionalisation it is remarkable just how many initiatives have been proposed recently. Such institutions, may be important venues within which 'asymmetric regionalism' may be manifest and perhaps managed. The paper provides an assessment of this process through an analysis of China's relationship with Southeast Asia. The paper initially provides a brief theoretical introduction which explains the relationship between regional development and its possible impact on inter-state relations. Following this I provide an analysis of the political economic and strategic dynamics that are shaping and being shaped by regional initiatives. Finally, I assess how successful ASEAN's efforts have been to engage China via regional mechanisms has actually been. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using both quantitative and qualitative data, this paper extends Joseph Nye's analytical framework on soft power to the China case, in order to provide a more balanced and updated analysis of the country's power status. We argue that the rise of China is not simply an expansion of hard power; it has also been accompanied by tremendous efforts to develop soft power. Soft power helps Beijing redraw geopolitical alliances in ways that will propel its rise as a global power. This process is nevertheless complicated by the deficiency of its soft power resources and the uneven progress in projecting the soft power abroad. The paper concludes that despite Beijing's growing ability to shape other people's worldview or political agenda, soft power remains Beijing's underbelly and China still has a long way to go to become a true global leader. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the question of whether the way bribery is practiced in China is such that corruption might be compatible with rapid economic growth during the boom years between 2000 and 2007. In particular, it examines whether bribery based on diffuse reciprocity transforms a corrupt relationship from one based on short-term egoistic gains (looting) to one based on long-term gains (profit maximizing), with the assumption that such a form of bribery will lead the parties to maximize total gains and hence will encourage long-term growth rather than short-term predatory looting. More broadly, the paper inquires whether a regime of informal property rights based on bribery and diffuse reciprocity might compensate for the shortcomings of an imperfectly constructed and incomplete set of formal property rights such as has emerged in post-Mao China and thereby improve the prospects for economic growth. The paper concludes that while bribery based on diffuse reciprocity may encourage the parties directly involved in such corrupt exchanges to maximize their total long-term gains, so long as bribery remains a private good and an informal property rights regime based on bribery remains subject to abrupt and catastrophic revision due to its illegal nature, 'bribery with Chinese characteristics' cannot be characterized as growth enhancing and thus cannot be a major explanation for why the Chinese economy grew rapidly during the 'third boom.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feudal Japan was one of the countries within the cultural space of Chinese characters and maintained a "tributary diplomacy" relationship with China. However, although it was part of the Chinese tribute system, Japan was not a typical tributary state like Korea or Vietnam at that time. Therefore, Japan's tribute activities with China, in addition to the similarities inherent in this activity, also had many unique characteristics. This article places Japan's tribute activities in the context of the region and compares them with China's tribute activities of Korea and Vietnam at the time to draw out similarities and differences. At the same time, the article derives the characteristics and essence of Japan's tribute activities at that time, contributing to an understanding of the nature of Japan–China relations in the past and present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iran-China relations have strengthened over the past decades. From an economic point of view, Iran has been an attractive destination for the Chinese businesses that are in search of new markets to expand the scope of their economic activities through trade, investment, and partnership. China has at the same time offered Iran a valuable alternative to the western economies, which gradually (and partly due to the economic sanctions imposed on Iran) decreased their level of engagement with Iran. Moreover, the relationships between China and Iran have expanded gradually to military and security cooperation. This paper will examine the development of various aspects of Sino-Iranian relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores connectivity from the prism of multilateral development banks. It recognises that theorising on connectivity is increasing, but as connectivity agency is less addressed, it aims to contribute to discussions on who the agents of connectivity are and how they contribute thereto. By analysing the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Infrastructure Bank (AIIB) respectively, the article sets forth a three-dimensional agency: strategic, developmental and financial. This is in line with the multi-layered nature of the banks, which reflects the broader member states and key state interests. Next to their role as banks, they contribute to the understanding of development, in addition to which they represent key shareholder interests. The banks are both to be seen as nodes of connectivity and as active agents in realising connectivity for others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article surveys recent legislative and policy changes on foreign investments in four Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway). Until recently, only Finland had national legislation on foreign investments, although historically the Nordic countries were forerunners in introducing foreign investment controls. A general rethink in the USA and the European Union on the links between liberal economies, investment policies and security has occurred in recent years. This has cast investments by enterprises from major authoritarian countries, foremost China, in a different light. Rather than investment numbers as such, or realised risks related to Chinese investments, a 'causal narrative' has emerged in the Nordic countries that draws attention to the nature of the Chinese party-state and its' unclear relationship to Chinese companies, underlining potential strategic motivations and security risks behind Chinese investments. Rapidly changing risk perceptions have driven legislative and policy changes on foreign direct investment (FDI), e.g. investment screening. Chinese investments have thus become riskified, to use a term coined by Olaf Corry. Shifting risk perceptions have similarly preceded previous 'formative epochs' in Nordic FDI legislation in the early twentieth century, after the Second World War and at the end of the Cold War. Each formative epoch has been characterised by a distinctive 'risk profile'. We postulate that these shifting risk perceptions significantly shape the reception of FDI as a key channel of cross-border connectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the Chinese quest for energy resources in Latin America, arguing that the strengthening of relations in this sector can only be explained by a conjunction of interests on both sides. Looking at the presence of Chinese national oil companies in the regional energy sector, we show that China’s incursion has allowed the region to shift its traditional energy partners, introducing a factor of change into economic and political relations with geopolitical implications for the regional arena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The projects discussed in this paper, Galileo and ITER, are two contrasting experiences of Euro-Asian cooperation within Very Large (Public) Scientific Enterprises. They offer key insights into the deepening relations which have given shape to the rapidly expanding field of Euro-Asian collaborative interregional projects. Cooperative agendas within such "Big Science" endeavors heighten the question of the political considerations supporting the decision to engage specific forms of international cooperation. As the main driving force behind both projects, the EU's choices have resulted in the establishment of novel and distinct forms of Euro-Asian scientific cooperation. A better understanding of how such Euro-Asian initiatives emerge can logically be garnered by confronting the Euro-Chinese cooperation within Galileo, and the Euro-Japanese partnership within ITER. This comparison will show that the agendas and institutions of these two interregional policies vary greatly. Within the same policy field - in casu Large Scientific Projects - and in relationship to the same region - i.e. East Asia - this study shows that fundamentally different policies are practiced side-by-side. If in both cases Euro-Asian scientific cooperation has provided its participants with renewed leverage and unprecedented opportunities, the exact scope and function of these interregional collaborations range from the merely tactical in the Euro-Chinese Galileo experience, to the substantial in the Euro-Japanese ITER experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chinese and Indian government are eager to intensify bilateral ties. This paper evaluates whether this enthusiasm has positively affected perceptions of the two societies in general, political actors and experts. A review of opinion polls, publications and official documents learned that this is not the case. Mutual perceptions are marked with ambivalence and distrust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This story covered here is an unprecedented case of foreign “takeover” of a Chinese press in the pre-WTO era. Despite the open prohibition of foreign involvement in the media sector, the grip of the central state seems futile in the face of the lure of capital. This detailed study of foreign investment in The Modern Man (TMM), a newspaper in Guangzhou, helps uncover the tension and dynamics of the process of globalization. As reflected in the case of TMM, while the lure of foreign capital does account for the reticence of local state on the ideological concerns of the centre, the party-state however, still maintains an array of leverages in containing the unwelcome foreign presence when necessary. Neither the radical view of a “powerless state”, nor the moderate views of “enabling state” alone seem adequate in explaining the reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research is to assess the economic growth and sustainable development of Ethiopia. To what extent does the Chinese investment contribute to the overall economic development of Ethiopia after the Belt Road Initiative (BRI)? What are the main focus areas for development in the region and how does the BRI initiative connect people in the country? This research examines the development process through the use of a case study and discursive analysis to know the result of the investigation. The study is deeply elaborated and the technique adds analytical and qualitative methods. Furthermore, this research attempts to highlight the key approaches and concepts of Chinese engagement in Ethiopia as it attains development in several sectors through the BRI. The BRI is successfully pioneering transport systems, roads, railways, small industries, automotive sectors, and health development programs in Ethiopia. As result, the Chinese investments bring changes to the country after the successful launch of the BRI. Furthermore, the study concludes that there is a need to initiate numerous projects to improve human, social, and economic life in Ethiopia because the country is suffering from many internal problems and China has to work to eradicate recurring problems in the country. As an external actor, the role of China gains importance in Ethiopia in the context of the New Silk Road economic engagement in the African Continent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, some scholars of international politics have argued for the need to integrate the use of visual media into our understanding of global politics. In this respect, film (or movies) represents an effective media of communicating powerful ideas and political worldviews through a smorgasbord of sound and sensory experiences. This essay seeks to draw on the theoretical insights of scholars of visual international politics to analyze the ongoing geopolitical conflict between the United States and China. It will do so by examining two box-office hits in the West and China, namely, the Avengers and Wolf Warrior. Through a study of some of the key storylines in these films, this essay seeks to flesh out the differences in Sino-Western conceptions of patriotism, good and evil, and salvation. It argues that these differences are not just a matter of aesthetic preferences, but reflect more fundamental ideas and political worldviews salient in the thinking of China and the West. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Macau is a window to understand the struggle between China and Taiwan in foreign territories. Located at the doorstep of a giant nation, the Portuguese administration in Macau was once successful in striking a balance between Taiwan which maintained diplomatic relations with Portugal until 1975 on the one hand, and China, a communist regime that Portugal opposed on the other. The overspill of Cultural Revolution to Macau in 1966 and 1967 destructed the delicate balance. The 1966 "December 3 incident" and the aftermath were celebrated by pro-Beijing social elites as a victory of patriotic movement against oppressive colonialism. This came at a cost of Macau's isolation from the major Chinese communities outside China, namely Taiwan and Hong Kong. The political radicalization was followed by expulsion of the pro-Taiwan elements, eviction of British and Hong Kong establishments and erosion of Portuguese sovereignty over Macau. The impact on Macau's political social development lingered for decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decades, numerous critiques have emerged of China's policy towards Africa. These critiques perceive China as a mercantilist or neocolonial power seeking to dominate the African continent through land grabs, exploitative trade deals, and resource extraction. These critiques do however not consider how the Chinese government has attempted to justify its aid policy towards Africa in ways that claim to secure human beings. Though the Chinese government has not officially adopted the concept of human security, it has engaged with the concept and developed its own interpretation of how human beings should be secured. This interpretation is based on the depiction of China as a state victimized through imperialism that has emerged in the twenty-first century as a global power with visionary ideas. Accordingly, Chinese policymakers believe they can offer an alternative model to Western interventions, imposition of neoliberal economic doctrine, and emphasis on democratization and human rights. In Africa, though China's vision has generated benefits for some, it has also victimized others. China needs to critically reflect on and adapt its developmental vision if it truly intends to help human beings overcome the myriad challenges they face in their daily lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article seeks to explain why Singapore—a high-income, developed economy that does not require massive external financing or technical assistance for domestic infrastructure building—has repeatedly endorsed Belt-and-Road Initiative (BRI) and cooperated in related projects. Given the city-state's exceptionally high degree of economic openness and hence dependence on international trade, it argues that Singapore's support for BRI is driven primarily by its quest for strategic relevance. Lacking natural resources and an economic hinterland, the small trading state has pursued state-guided development, establishing itself as a key regional and global trading hub. Singapore's economic goals thus correspond to BRI's objective of improving Eurasian connectivity and strengthening trade and investment ties. At the same time, however, the city-state is also pursuing a hedging strategy vis-à-vis China. Singapore seeks to ensure no one major power dictates the economic terms in the region. The city-state hence seeks to both socialize Beijing in the norms of the existing regional architecture through engagement, while also emphasizing economic relations with other countries, especially the USA. Unlike most of China's other BRI partners, Singapore is not a recipient of investments, but rather a case of "reverse BRI flow": Singapore is investing in the development of China's western region, especially Chongqing. Singapore's support for BRI is likely to continue, even though the state may encounter obstacles along the way, such as the need to manage the effects of growing Sino-US rivalry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has broken many ceilings as Hong Kong's first female Chief Executive and the first post-Occupy Central leader. The mission of the political biographer is to contextualize Lam's policies in the circumstances that she was put into and/or inherited from previous administrations without any value judgments (or highly minimized ones). The purpose is to recognize Lam as a complex entity characterized by a triad of images that include caring a senior civil servant, a tough-talking iron lady (nicknamed "The Fighter") and a compliant Beijing loyalist (nicknamed "The Puppet" or "CY Leung 2.0"). The readers are the ultimate arbiters and evaluators of these narratives and perceptions to craft their own impression of Lam. The writing is organized into sections analyzing Lam's family background, her rise in the civil service, her appointment as Chief Secretary, and her current tenure as the Chief Executive. The significance of this writing is an early assessment of Lam's achievements and policy direction and a recount of her initiatives when she was Chief Secretary that can later be compared to post-administration retirement biographical writings for a full understanding of her political achievements and failures. Taken together, these accounts can then be a combined diachronic and synchronic historical biographical accounts of Lam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liberalists have argued that increased economic interdependence will deter the likelihood of war as opportunity costs of a military conflict will not be fashionable for either side. Realists such as Waltz contended that while interdependence promotes peace to a certain extent, it also multiplies the occasions for conflicts. Dale Copeland drew perspectives from both sides to argue that interdependence may lead to peace depending on the expectations of the future trade environment. Now, with the United States’ (US) ongoing trade war with China and its legacy of trade conflicts with Japan in the 1990s, the question of whether economic interdependence brings peace deserves to be revisited. This article, through making a comparison between the cases of bilateral trade conflicts between the US and China and the US and Japan, contends that increased bilateral economic interdependence also increased the frequency of conflicts in the two respective cases. Moreover, it further argues that such increase in frequency was due to the US’s negative expectations on the future trade environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advertising studies allow us not only to differentiate successful from unsuccessful marketing activities, but establish the fact as well that advertising reveals specific cultural norms that somehow differ depending on global regions. Advertising studies feature a clearly pronounced interdisciplinary nature and allow us to better understand what cultural basis specific advertising texts are made on. An advertising message is oriented on both rational and emotional-affective processes among the people perceiving the message. Modern Chinese consumers live in a complex social and cultural space. The ideology of the People's Republic of China combines traditional philosophy, socialist ideas, and technological pragmatism. In modern China, advertising costs are skyrocketing (the year-to-year increase is about 100%). Chinese visual advertising images are based on a complex mixture of global and traditional cultural values and embody different aspects of 'the Great Chinese Dream.' A visual analysis of Chinese advertisements allows us to see what traditional and global values are embodied by advertisers in advertising texts in order to render such advertising messages more effectively. Generally encountered are female images, nature-related images, and images pertaining to the ancient past of China. At the same time, ancient Chinese traditions are subject to globalization. Chinese traditional female images are created in the context of trends of mass culture. Nevertheless, the keynote remains within China's traditional values. All the while, it features no forced separation from the global culture. It is more likely that China harmoniously includes the components considered acceptable within its own worldview. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in January 2016, China's response was stern enough for certain China analysts to posit that the Middle Kingdom's approach to its Cold War ally was changing. In reality, however, China's imports from North Korea, especially coal, a crucial mineral for the North's income but banned by United Nations (UN) Resolution 2270, did not decrease. Politically, China also strived to maintain mutual relations with North Korea. Based on its strategic and other cost-benefit calculations, Beijing needs to maintain economic and political ties with Pyongyang and thus has no incentive to seriously observe the U.N. resolution. In this context, China is expected to virtually repeat the gestures it made in the past in dealing with the North. Under these circumstances, sanctioning North Korea through China is not considered a viable option in tackling the nuclear issue; rather, the USA and South Korea should change their policy approach toward this problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like other developing countries, China has been struggling with corruption. Judicial corruption, in particular, damages the rule of law and presents a market disruption as an outcome of a lack of commitment by the government regarding property rights. This article seeks to explain the variations in judicial corruption within China, and it develops a theory of city-level corruption of judges. The theory is tested by an empirical study with data from the World Bank corruption survey using a Bayesian spatial linear model. While wealth appears to diminish corruption, there is also a strong spatial relationship with regard to the level of judicial corruption in China, indicating that as some regions become less corrupt, surrounding areas also experience a diminution in corruption. Thus, through a process organic to the current regime, China could experience an increase in judicial trustworthiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past 2 years, there have been signs that the Chinese Communist Party has activated the propaganda machine to build a cult of personality around the current leader: Xi Jinping. The campaign has global ambitions. This study analyzes Chinese state media news stories, music videos, and animation on social media to discuss the themes of rhetoric and ritual. Using firsthand observation along with a brief comparison of the Soviet Union system and the history of the Communist Party of China (CPC), this study provides details on how the CPC is attempting to produce a cult of personality and the constraints it faces in doing so. Understanding this process is important for understanding the CPC and predicting whether China will continue to experience personalized regimes in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the tremendous amount of money that China has poured into events such as the 2008 Beijing Games and the 2010 Shanghai Expo and establishing Confucius Institutes throughout the world, the Chinese government is interested in advancing its international image and developing its soft power. In some instances, however, the Chinese government is willing to resist international pressure regarding human rights issues. In the process, the Chinese government is willing to incur damage to its international image on the issues in which it believes that there are more costs by adhering to international criticism than gains for China. In short, to what extent is China concerned about its international image regarding human rights pressure? Under what conditions is China willing to resist international criticism regarding human rights and thus incur damage to its international image? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social development in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region from 1999 to 2009 is the focus of this article. I will explore the current situation among Uyghurs and Hans living in Xinjiang in different social contexts and purviews, mainly assessing problems and open questions hindering a balanced and consensus-based social development in the area. The concept of 'development' per se will be understood with a critical perspective. The fieldwork was conducted in 2011 and 2012 in Urumqi, Turpan, Kahsgar, Wujiaqu and Shihezi, and in eight rural villages-seven located in the Kashgar Prefecture and one in Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture. The opportunity to adopt an 'insider perspective', at the same time working with critical tools provided by the disciplines of sociology and anthropology, can be considered an important asset in the field of Xinjiang studies. My PhD research in China (2010-2013) and my work as consultant for KFW (2011-2012) have been of great help in adopting this approach. Interviews, participant observation and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data from different sources are the basis of the fieldwork results presented here. UNDP indicators and indexes are taken as reference in setting and organising data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]