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2. China’s Global Strategy as Science Fiction
- Author:
- William A. Callahan
- Publication Date:
- 01-2023
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- Xi Jinping is leading China in a new direction, but how are we to understand his global strategy? For most countries, to understand domestic and international politics we would analyse authoritative sources – leaders’ speeches, official documents and statistics, elite interviews and essays, and public opinion surveys. In the 2000s these methods worked well to probe Chinese politics. But since civil society and independent thought have been severely restricted under Xi, it’s necessary to go beyond such “factual” sources. To understand China’s global strategy, it’s best to read fiction, especially Chinese science fiction. This essay critically analyses Liu Cixin’s novels, The Wandering Earth and the Three Body Problem trilogy, to probe how Chinese sci-fi pushes us to think creatively about key topics: the relation of humans and technology, the relation of science and politics, and the relations between political communities, i.e. are we doomed to existential struggle, or can we engage with difference in creative and productive ways?
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Science and Technology, Grand Strategy, Novels, and Science Fiction
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
3. China’s Provinces as Global Actors: Evidence from China-Africa Relations
- Author:
- Charlotte Lenz
- Publication Date:
- 01-2023
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- With the launch in the early 2000s of China’s ‘Going Global’ Strategy, Chinese provinces became one group of actors participating in China’s South-South relations. In this Strategic Update, Charlotte Lenz investigates the role of Chinese provinces as foreign policy actors and explains their internationalisation strategies, challenging the prevalent perception of China as a unitary actor on the world stage. Drawing on evidence from Africa-China relations, the report identifies two strategies employed by Chinese provinces in pursuit of their foreign policy interests: (1) Formal and informal “twinning” as a collaborative model between central and local actors, wherein central actors design policies and provincial governments execute projects; (2) and “clustering” according to a sectoral logic of investment and diplomacy in which a certain Chinese province engages a certain foreign country. Despite ongoing bureaucratic centralisation under Xi Jinping, provinces continue to pursue their own internationalisation strategies to help meet local economic and employment targets. Understanding their agency, interests and limitations is thus key to deriving a better understanding of China’s evolving global presence.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, Investment, and Internationalization
- Political Geography:
- Africa, China, and Asia
4. "Best and Bosom Friends" Putin, Xi and the Challenge to the West
- Author:
- Michael Cox
- Publication Date:
- 11-2022
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- In this latest Strategic Update, LSE IDEAS co-founder Professor Michael Cox highlights China as a significant player in the current tragedy occurring within Ukraine. Prof Cox traces the relationship between the People’s Republic and the USSR, through to the latter’s collapse into the Russian Federation, their formation of a strategic partnership against a unipolar post-Cold War order, and the rise in power of Xi Jinping alongside two international crises caused by Russian aggression in Ukraine. This Update finds that, whilst there are limits to their shared interests, China is politically committed to its Russian partner, and this status-quo leaves us in a more dangerous world.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Partnerships, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and Russia-Ukraine War
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, and Asia
5. China’s Digital Silk Road in Indonesia: Progress and implications
- Author:
- Zulfikar Rakhmat
- Publication Date:
- 07-2022
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- This Strategic Update discusses the progress of China’s Digital Silk Road in Indonesia, a major destination, in both its hard and soft aspects, as well as the potential impact of its implementation. Chinese companies are offering a response to Indonesia’s needs, but concerns exist, especially surrounding security and surveillance, that Indonesia’s increasing reliance on China could also further erode its democracy.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Economy, Surveillance, and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
- Political Geography:
- China, Indonesia, Asia, and Indo-Pacific
6. Can Chancellor Scholz Save the West? The New German Government and Global Geopolitics
- Author:
- Maximilian Terhalle
- Publication Date:
- 01-2022
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- In the wake of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s departure from the German Chancellorship, her successor, Olaf Scholz, inherits a Germany which has been lacking in strategic vision and an acute foreign policy for a considerable amount of time. Maximilian Terhalle asks, can Chancellor Scholz provide this vision for his country, and imbue NATO and the EU with a coherent and unified foreign policy in the face of threats from China, Russia, and a divided ‘West’?
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, NATO, European Union, Geopolitics, Olaf Scholz, and Russia-Ukraine War
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, Europe, and Germany
7. Education, Training and Capacity Building in the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) 2021: Multilateral and Bilateral Ambitions Twenty Years On
- Author:
- Kenneth King
- Publication Date:
- 04-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- The latest Forum for China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) took place in Dakar, Senegal in November 2021. Among the huge range of pledges and agreements, one of the most extensive was capacity building through scholarships, targeted training and people-to-people exchanges. In this Occasional Paper, Kenneth King analyses China’s pledges not just in the sphere of formal education, but across the many different sectors of China’s collaboration with Africa for the next three years. While the impact of COVID-19 can be seen in the reduction of some face-to-face opportunities in China, the extent of what is agreed to be implemented in Africa remains significant. Though these ambitious promises are agreed multilaterally with the whole of Africa, they are delivered bilaterally across the continent in more than fifty different country settings, reflecting how the Africa-China relationship remains strong after two decades of growing engagement.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Education, International Cooperation, Bilateral Relations, Multilateralism, Training, and Capacity Building
- Political Geography:
- Africa and China
8. FOCAC at 21: Future Trajectories of China-Africa Relations
- Author:
- Chris Alden, Stephen Paduano, Mzukisi Qobo, Lukas Fiala, Iginio Gagliardone, Yu-Shan Wu, Gidon Gautel, and Lina Benabdallah
- Publication Date:
- 10-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- The China-Africa relationship has continued to evolve over the last years. In light of the 8th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) that will take place later in 2021, the latest report from LSE IDEAS China Foresight brings together an international team of experts to shed light on emerging and consolidated areas of engagement between China and Africa that will likely shape the relationship in the years to come.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, International Cooperation, and Engagement
- Political Geography:
- Africa and China
9. The Dragon Lands in Belgrade: The Drivers of Sino-Serbian Partnership
- Author:
- Vuk Vuksanovic
- Publication Date:
- 07-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- In recent years, the partnership between Serbia and China has been elevated to a historically unprecedented level. This partnership manifests itself through Chinese economic statecraft, technological partnership, security partnership, with political ties reaching an unprecedented degree during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as Vuk Vuksanovic examines, the future of this partnership will be dependent on the trajectory of China’s relationship with the West. As US-China relations are becoming adversarial, and as China’s relations with the EU are shaken, it will become increasingly difficult and risky for Belgrade to maintain its ties with Beijing. From ‘vaccine diplomacy’ to ‘debt-trap diplomacy’, this Strategic Update examines the Sino-Serbian partnership we are witnessing and what the future has in store for Serbian policymakers.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Economics, Partnerships, and COVID-19
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, and Serbia
10. Shaping the Indo-Pacific? Japan and Europeanisation
- Author:
- Yee-Kuang Heng
- Publication Date:
- 11-2021
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- In this Strategic Update, Professor Yee-Kuang Heng investigates European power projection and presence in the Indo-Pacific, and its converging nature with Japan’s attempt to shape the regional environment in its favour. While UK threat perceptions have converged significantly with Japan’s since former Prime Minister David Cameron’s promulgation of a “golden era” in relations with China, managing expectations of Japan’s attempt to ‘shape’ and encourage Europeanisation remains crucial. But is it fair to conclude that Japan has been successful in encouraging a stronger European presence to help it shape the Indo-Pacific order?
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Europeanization, and Strategic Competition
- Political Geography:
- Japan, China, United Kingdom, Europe, and Indo-Pacific
11. China in One Country: interdependence or globalisation 'with Chinese characteristics'?
- Author:
- George Magnus
- Publication Date:
- 07-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- Globalisation has faltered, and faces significant political challenges. In both the US and China, voices are calling for a reduction of economic interdependence between the two countries. In the US, this has taken the name of decoupling, in China, self-reliance. At the same time, China’s President, Xi Jinping has vocally championed globalisation in various global fora in recent years. Understanding of China’s systems of government and business, as well as its global interests, is lacking when compared to that of the US. In this Strategic Update, George Magnus investigates what is meant when China’s leadership speaks of globalisation, and what the implications of the answer are for the rest of the world.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Economics, Globalization, and Leadership
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, and United States of America
12. Economic Diplomacy in the 21st Century: Principles and Challenges
- Author:
- Linda Yueh
- Publication Date:
- 08-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- Economic diplomacy in the 21st century will face a different set of challenges stemming from the changed global economy, US-China tensions, as well as a backlash against globalisation, among others. Therefore, the conduct of economic diplomacy, i.e., how a country manages its foreign economic relations including trade and investment, must adapt. The framework for economic diplomacy should seek to balance commercial openness with strategic foreign policy aims, broadly defined. It should situate a country within the 21st century global economy with its new drivers, promote a rules-based system in order to mitigate Great Power tensions, and recognise that all foreign economic policy is ultimately also domestic. There is no one general approach but there are several principles, each with their own challenges, for governments to consider, which is set out in this Strategic Update.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Investment, Trade, and Economic Diplomacy
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, North America, and United States of America
13. All Hands on Deck: the Crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Need for US Leadership
- Author:
- Alexandros Zachariades
- Publication Date:
- 10-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- Crisis has returned to the Eastern Mediterranean where Greek and Turkish economic interests, legal claims, and armed forces are squaring off. In this Strategic Update, Alexandros Zachariades explores how the two NATO powers arrived at the current confrontation, how the contest intersects with issues ranging from China to Libya, and how the international community can resolve the tension.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, NATO, Economics, and Leadership
- Political Geography:
- China, Turkey, Greece, Libya, United States of America, and Mediterranean
14. Battleground Southeast Asia: China's Rise and America's Options
- Author:
- Charles Dunst
- Publication Date:
- 03-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- LSE IDEAS
- Abstract:
- Southeast Asia, while still a reservoir of goodwill for the US, has in recent years come increasingly under China's umbrella. In this Strategic Update, Charles Dunst analyzes China's expansion there, discusses Southeast Asians' American predeliction, and offers steps the US can take to "win back" the region.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Politics, International Affairs, and Strategic Competition
- Political Geography:
- China, Southeast Asia, and United States of America