This reading list explores the evolution of China’s role in the international system over the last century. The articles included explore its turbulent relations with the United States, its involvement in global governance and how China is perceived by numerous international actors.
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c) To what extent is the future a battle between the Global West and Global East for the Global South?
d) Is a separation of global orders inevitable?
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a) Is strategic competition between the US and China inevitable?
b) Is Sino-US rivalry containable?
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a) To what extent does Chinese rhetoric hide its opposition to prevention?
b) To what extent is China's policy reflective of a wider view?
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a) How does China perceive itself?
b) How important are visual depictions in generating a narrative?
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a) What sort of international order does China want?
b) Is conflict with western views on international order inevitable?
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a) To what extent is China undermining the international sovereign debt market?
b) How is China seeking to use debt?
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a) To what extent is China seeking to change the Indo-Pacific security architecture to its advantage?
b) How are others responding to China?
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a) How does China use narratives to enhance its influence in the Gulf?
b) How are Gulf monarchies navigating their position amidst the China-US competition?
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a) To what extent does history serve as a guide for how the US should approach China?
b) What obstacles stand in the way of a 'successful' American strategy towards China?
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a) What insights can states derive from the Mahabharata to approach rising powers like China?
b) If you were a policy-maker, which strategy would shape your stance towards China?
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a) To what extent does the Chinese Communist Party rely on nationalism?
b) Between the Chinese government and its population, does the country hold a unified view of politics?
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a) What is China's goal in the Mekong region?
b) How have Mekong countries reacted to Chinese engagement efforts?
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a) What are the philosophical underpinnings of China's psychological warfare?
b) What are the advantages of psychological warfare as an instrument of statecraft?
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a) How is China reforming international institutions from within for global influence?
b) What challenges does China face in increasing its international civil servant footprint?
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a) How is technological innovation transforming China's counter-terrorism strategy?
b) Is it accurate to describe the PRC's actions in Xinjiang as 'social engineering'?
Snapshot from history
During the 1980s China fundamentally reoriented its economy under reformist leader Deng Xiaoping. Despite continued limitations on political expression domestically, the country sought to engage the West in a far more liberal economic guise than was the norm under Mao Zedong. In 1985 Chatham House was visited by senior official Zhao Ziyang, later the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, who gave a speech setting out China’s foreign policy priorities.
Discussion questions:
a) What does this speech reveal about Chinese public diplomacy towards the West under Deng Xiaoping?
b) How was China positioning itself within the international order during this period?
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