A Norm-Taker or a Norm-Maker？ China＇s ODA in Southeast Asia

As China expands its official development assistance (ODA) in Southeast Asia,is Chinese aid beginning to emulate international norms and practices or instead establishing its own distinct approach to development assistance? This essay argues that China’s socialization into international norms varies with the thickness of the institutional environment. In Cambodia and Laos,China’s aid program shows signs of alignment with international aid practices. At the regional level,however,China is beginning to act more like a norm-maker. Through expanding its financial support for select regional initiatives,Beijing is bolstering its ability to shape the norms and practices of regional developmental institutions. China’s rising ODA in Southeast Asia poses a potential challenge to Australia’s influence in the region,but also provides opportunities for greater diplomatic engagement and cooperation in support of regional development.     

The Evolution of China’s Security Challenges and Grand Strategy

This article examines changes in China’s security perceptions since 1949 and sketches the evolution of China’s grand strategy. In tracing the evolution of China’s security perceptions and grand strategy since 1949, it identifies elements of change as well as continuity. The changes reflect dramatic developments in the PRC’s capabilities and the international circumstances it faces, both of which have shaped the grand strategic choices of China’s leaders. During most of the Cold War decades, a relatively weak China’s vulnerability to serious military threats from much more powerful adversaries led the CCP to adopt grand strategies focused on coping with a clearly defined external security challenge. After the Cold War and especially in the 21st century, an increasingly complex array of internal and external security concerns confronts China’s leaders with new challenges. The paper concludes with a discussion of the significance of the recently established National Security Commission and offers brief observations about its potential significance for the CCP’s leadership in their fight against the new domestic and international security challenges it faces. The novelty of China’s security challenges at home and abroad in the 21st century is a consequence of the end of the Cold War international order and perhaps more importantly, a consequence of China’s successful modernization since 1979.     

Challenges and Opportunities in Development Cooperation Between China and Traditional Donors in Africa

Cooperation between China and traditional donors in Africa is a part of new triangular mode of development bringing together three parties:traditional donors,emerging donors,and the beneficiary countries.Traditional donors and emerging donors act together in favor of and in cooperation with beneficiary countries.Triangular development cooperation is an extension of classical North-South and South-South cooperation.As yet,it does not feature prominently in the global development cooperation architecture.China’s emergence as a significant contributor of development aid to Africa,however,has now become a hot topic in China,Africa and the West,and questions are being raised about the way in which China and the traditional donors will engage with each other in Africa.This article argues that while China and the traditional donors face a number of challenges,there is potential for the two parties to implement further cooperation in Africa.     

Some Thoughts on ＂Harmonious Globalization＂

This article argues that ＂Harmonious Globalization＂ offers a platform for harmonizing the positive and negative aspects of the current U.S.-led economic globalization that reflects the objective laws of human development. The article attempts to chart the path ahead for the world economy in the context of economic globalization, pervasive poverty/inequality, the resultant worldwide political awakening, the degradation of global ecosystems, and the current turmoil in financial institutions. The global challenge ahead will be three-fold： to bring the excluded 1/3 of the world＇s population into the open trade system; to encourage emerging markets like China and India to carry on with open policies and to persuade the developed Western nations to adhere to an open trade system and resist the temptations of trade protectionism. Free market access should be offered to those marginalized countries, the so-called ＂failed or failing states＂ that have been excluded from and angered by the globalization process. The growth in prosperity of these nations will open up a vast potential market for the world.     

CIIS President Contributes to WEF Special Report

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and at the invitation of WEF President Mr.Borge Brende,CIIS President Qi Zhenhong contributed an article entitled"Culture,Identity and the Evolution of Geopolitics"to a WEF special report.In the article,President Qi elaborated on the drastic changes in the world’s geopolitical and economic landscape.     

China＇s Engagement in African Security Cooperation： Evolution and Prospects

Although China began to engage in military cooperation with Africa quite soon after the founding of the People＇s Republic in 1949, there are as yet few articles on Sino-African security cooperation. Now, with a much closer security relationship between China and Africa, there is a need for more study of this issue. This article gives some idea of the evolution of Chinese engagement in African security cooperation and examines new opportunities for, and challenges to, a more active Chinese engagement in Africa in this domain.     

China’s Peripheral Security Environment: Analytical Framework, Indicator System and Evaluation *

Since the end of the Cold War, the West and China have had diverging interpretations of “security environment.” China tends to define security from the perspective of development, while the West’s definition concerns external threats to security. In Chinese circumstances, the understanding of security environment has evolved from simply military to a more comprehensive one covering military, politics, economics and public opinions. This article develops a theoretical framework to analyze China’s peripheral security environment in the new era, and constructs an indicator system to evaluate it. The indicator system consists of the political security environment, military security environment, development security environment, public opinion security environment, and China’s periphery strategy, drawing upon the theories of Realism, Liberal Institutionalism and Constructivism. Furthermore, this article analyzes indicators through dimensionless methods based on the databases of the World Bank, the “Foreign Relations” database of the Institute of Modern International Relations at Tsinghua University and the People’s Daily, and compares three peripheral security environment scenarios. The result shows that in a general sense, China’s peripheral security environment has improved over the past decades. However, the situations after the 2008 global financial crisis have diverged, and different theoretical perspectives provide very different images. It seems that China has entered a very different environment, and for stable security environment in the future, China needs to cooperate with neighboring countries.     

The EU's New China Policy and the Future of Bilateral Ties

This article forecasts the future of bilateral ties by examining the recent readjustments in the European Union’s China policy.It highlights the EU’s interest in a closer bilateral cooperation focusing on pragmatism and an integrated approach to China by EU member states.The future of bilateral ties will hinge on whether the two sides can seize the current opportunity to expand complementary areas in their economies while curbing competition.     

Personal View on Sino-U.S. ＇Trust Deficit＇

The lack of strategic trust between China and the U.S.has attracted a great deal of attention recently in both countries.An article carried in Stars and Strips newspaper said that "bilateral distrust is at an all-time high," and the two are engaged in a "new kind of Cold War".1 Several newspapers in China carried this story and several Chinese scholars also gave their take on the situation.2 The author of this paper believes that this is an exaggerated and one-sided view and does not reflect the reality of the state of China-U.S.relations.     

NATO''s New Strategy in C. Asia and Its Impacts

Ever since the September 11 terrorist attacks, the United States and NATO have sent large troops to Afghanistan and greatly strengthened partnership for peace (PfP) with Central Asian countries. The recent dramatic political changes in some Eurasian countries have also provided U. S. and NATO favorable conditions to expand their influence and to squeeze Russia-China's strategic space.While U. S. and NATO have steadily become established in Afghanistan and some Eurasian countries, their potential threat to China's security and energy supply from Central Asia is looming large. Therefore, how to cope with the expanding U. S. -NATO's influence in Central Asia and have dialogue and cooperation with NATO have become urgent tasks for China. This article tries to explore and analyze the U. S.-NATO new strategy toward Central Asia and its potential impacts on China's security and its other interests in the region. It also makes some tentative exploration on the possibilities of China-NATO cooperation in the future.     

Chaos and Change in Symbiosis:The World in 2010

The state of the world in 2010 can be summed up in a single word:symbiosis.Chaos and change feed on each other in a phenomenon that mirrors the tendency towards change in today’s international strategic landscape.This article attempts to create an overview of the most important features and trends of the situation by looking at shifts in major power relations,the rise of the Asia-Pacific region,geo-strategic upheavals,tension on the Korean peninsula,military security,world economy and China’s diplomacy.It asserts that chaos is not necessarily a bad thing.     

What Makes America？--On Turner＇s Theory of Frontier

Frederick Jackson Turner argues in his ＂Frontier Thesis＂ that American democracy and individualism are shaped by adaptation to the environment and the exploitation of the frontier. The westward advance explains the development of America and the evolution of its national character. However, the weakness of his theory is that he does not define the nature of the frontier, or the exploitation of that frontier as a process. Although scholars and Presidents tend to proclaim the unique and exceptional traits of America, the rudiments of democracy originate from Europe. The Puritans in New England brought with them the idea of liberty and mission; the gentlemen of the Old South embodied the features of dignity, gallantry and hospitality; slave culture displayed a sense of humor and the pursuit of freedom and equality. All of these elements molded the colorful national character and culture of the United States of America.     

Disadvantaged Groups and Asymmetric Conflicts

The article metaphorizes the relationship of extra-system actors with the world＇s dominant international system as a ＂jostle-to-board- the-train Game Model,＂ and transplants the disadvantaged group theory of domestic sociology to international relations. On the basis of this the author proposes a loss-driven model to explain the self-destructive asymmetric conflicts in the world today. As the result of two climaxes in the jostle to board the train games, the author argues that three structural changes have occurred： centralization of power, institutionalization, and legitimization in the international system. These changes have created a ＂spindle-shaped＂ system structure with international disadvantaged groups taking a passive role. Although this structure is highly stable, channels for international disadvantaged groups to express their interests are blocked. As the net losers in the established system and order, international disadvantaged groups have no alternative but to follow the loss-driven model to confront the strong. Their action of ＂beating stone with eggs＂ is surely not capable of overthrowing the whole system, but creates a significant potential threat to world stability and harmony.     

China＇ s Land ＆ Sea Frontiers and Strategic Thinking

Land frontiers and territorial seas are important to a country’s development and security.The issue of frontiers should be considered and dealt with within the country’s overall strategy of diplomacy and security.It should never be dealt with in isolation as some members of the     

Editor＇s Note

China has attached great importance in handling relations in neighborhood as the work of diplomacy with its neighbors is incredibly heavy, since the founding of the People＇s Republic of China. Zheng Ruixiang, Senior Research Fellow at China Institute of International Studies, made an account of the great achievements of China＇s diplomacy in neighborhood in his article Creating a Peaceful and Stable Neighboring Environment.     

Peace at a Price: Strategic Studies of Current International Security and War Issues

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the end of the World War II and the victory of the Anti-Fascist War. The WWII is an unprecedented disaster for humanity and, however, it can never be guaranteed that world wars will not break out again in the future. Just as wars can be classified as cold wars and hot wars, peace can also be defined as cold peace and real peace. Cold Peace, as an unstable state in the international relations, may bring misleading perception of peace, where peace is taken for granted, and potential crises may lead to international conflicts/ wars. This is clearly reflected in concerns of western scholars as exemplified by what is called Kissinger’s Worry and Haass’s Question. This paper approaches the question from a strategic and historical perspective and draws the following three conclusions: 1) historically, it takes a long time for people to realize the negative impacts of wars; 2) currently, we are in a dangerous stage of cold peace in terms of international security; 3) the Sino-US and Sino-Japanese relations will be crucial to the major power relations that affect China’s the national security in the future. China should find ways to deal with the two major relations and play its role in maintaining the world peace.     

Nuclear Proliferation in the Post-Cold War Era

Nuclear weapons look set to stay with us, fulfilling as they do a different role from that of conventional weapons, in terms of their deadly potential for massive destruction. Indeed, nuclear weapons served as a stabilizing force during the hostile Cold War period. Sine the end of the Cold War, our world has undergone huge changes. Relative peace continues to be maintained on the basis of the logic of a ＂balance of terror＂, but the nuclear cloud hanging over human beings has never quite left us. Both the U.S. and Russia retain large nuclear arsenals, and a significant number of state and non-state actors on the stage of world politics continue to show interest in this lethal weapon. So-called ＂nuclear crises＂ flare up and test the wodd＇s nerves every now and again, and with some major nuclear powers continuing to make adjustments to their nuclear policies, the world nuclear proliferation position appears to be undergoing significant and profound change and transformation. In this article the author intends to help readers to become acquainted with the nuclear status quo as well as the characteristics of post-Cold War nuclear proliferation. The author also aims to help readers to understand the causes of the post-Cold War nuclear proliferation.     

International System and China＇s Asia-Pacific Strategy

What impact does a shift in the global distribution of power have on the international order？ According to the views of traditional realists, power transitions in the international order are usually accompanied by major wars, the best example being the two world wars of the twentieth century. China＇s peaceful rise is conducive to the peace and stability of Asia and Pacific regions. The steady rise of China＇s position and its role in dealing with international and regional problems have proved China＇s success in ＂cooperative security＂. This paper analyzes the security order in the Asia-Pacific region1 that China wants to construct to provide important guarantees to its peaceful rise. Firstly, I review and compare key arguments about the transition of international systems and China＇s Asia-Pacific strategy, Secondly, I investigate the dynamics between China＇s peaceful rise and the ＂cooperative security＂ which I think are the collective embodiments of modem transformation and the restructuring of China＇s traditional strategic culture. Thirdly, I examine how to construct a mechanism of cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region to guarantee China＇s peaceful rise on both political and economic levels. Economic cooperation and free trade in Asia-Pacific region is an important route to regional economic integrity which will guarantee China＇s role in maintaining the political and economic security in the region.     

Constructing and Conceptualizing “Interdependent Hegemony” in an Era of the Rise of the BRICS and Beyond

The paper aims to provide a framework for understanding the global impact of the rise of the “Second World” (emerging powers, such as BRICS) brought about by globalization and the transformation of international relations and international political economy. The paper takes the point of departure from one of Gramsci’s key conceptual categories and analytical apparatus, e.g. “hegemony,” to explore the extent that the upsurge of the emerging powers has reshaped the terrain and parameters of social, economic and political relations both at the national and global levels, and has exerted pressure on the existing international order in terms of both opportunities and constraints. The paper intends to examine the dialectical nexus between the role of the emerging powers as a counter-hegemonic, socio-economic and socio-political force for a new world order. The paper’s analytical approach is to combine neo-Gramscian hegemony theories with critical post-hegemony theories. The conclusion of the paper is to suggest that in an era of globalization and transformational capitalism it is impossible for the emerging powers to establish an alternative independent hegemony; rather, the world will witness a new era of “interdependent hegemony,” in which both the “First World” and the “Second World” are intertwined in a constant process of shaping and reshaping the world order in the nexus of national interest, regional orientation, common economic and political agendas, security alliance and potential confl icts.     

Tackling Challenges in the Global Economy and Building a New World Order--China＇s Influence and U.S. Factors

Gtreat expectations rest upon the U.S. and China, as the biggest economies in the developed and developing worlds, with regard to tackling challenges in the global economy and building a new world order. The governments have enjoyed a solid cooperation within the framework of G20. A rising China looks forward to an improved economic order and more effective responsiveness to other global challenges, and so will begin to participate in global affairs with a positive and constructive attitude and bear responsibilities commensurate with her status. China has benefited from the existing global economic order, and so will try to be a reviser or a reformer rather than a revolutionist in the world economic system. This article will assess Chinese influence on the global economic order and related U.S. factors from a long-term perspective.