china IR rev final sept 2023

International relations of China
P.R. Kumaraswamy China and the Middle East. The Quest for Influence,
Sage, 1999.
China has evolved a complex Middle East policy, which is now integral to its great power aspirations. Comprising
original contributions from a mixed bag of authors, this book examines China’s relations with key players in the Middle
East and the impact of its Middle East policy on interactions with the USA and the UN, among others.
Qiang Zhai China and the Vietnam Wars, 1950-1975, University of North
Carolina UP, 2000.
China has traditionally held to the view that it has vital interests vis-à-vis Korea and South-East-Asia, where it has
sought a sphere of influence. Drawing on primary sources, Qiang Zhai examines China’s Indochina policy during the
Cold War, depicting it as a rival of France and the United States, and explores the historical, domestic, and international
context of the evolution of the relationship between Vietnam and China during the Cold War. Zhai provides essential
insights into China’s conduct toward Vietnam and the ideological and geopolitical motives behind Mao Zedong’s
foreign policy toward Vietnam. Permanent Chinese interest and threat perception vis-à-vis the United States during the
1950’ies and subsequently concerns about Soviet inroads in South East Asia during the 1960’ies and 1970’ies, which
led Mao to prod North Vietnam to conduct peace negotiations with the United States, which in turn contributed to the
ping-pong diplomacy. From this, Kissinger drew inspiration and hatched a plan for triangular diplomacy between
Beijing-Washington-Moscow to keep the two communist giants from coalescing and paved the ground for the opening
up of China to the United States and subsequently to the world economy under a new Chine leadership. For a study on
the recent evolution of Vietnamese foreign policy, consult Le Hong & Anton Tsvetov Vietnam’s Foreign Policy under
Doi Moi.
Yeo Lay Hwee ASEM. The Asia-Europe Meeting Process: From Sexy
Summit to Strong Partnership ?, DUPI, 2002.
ASEM is the official abbreviation for the Asia-Europe Meeting – an informal forum and process for developing
dialogue and cooperation between the two “old world” continents, Asia and Europe. One of ASSEM’s most noticeable
peculiarities lies in the composition of its regional representation. The club members are characterized by all being on
the economic growth trajectory. “ASEM is the result of various constellations of forces and interests. Explanations of its
emergence can be explained by the main theoretical strands: the realist, liberal-institutionalist, and quasi-social
constructivist. Each IR school explains different aspects of ASEM. The realists emphasize factors such as a systemic
change in power distribution, the emergence of East Asia as an economic powerhouse, and the desire for an
increasingly integrated EU to become a global actor in the emerging new world order. They also point to the
convergence of narrow economic interest among the member states, the commercial race towards East Asia, and the
newly developed Asian economy’s need to attract European capital and technology. All these forces combine to create
the momentum behind the birth of ASEM. Liberal institutionalists, in turn, underline the rise in interest in regionalism
and a trend toward inter-regional dialogue, and as an alternative to traditional bilateralism – which is seen as inadequate
for coping with global problems – and to universalism – which is seen as hampered by the multiplicity and diversity of
actors involved. Regionalism is a means to address challenges caused by globalization (read: an intensification of
American-led businesses’ search for markets). ASEM, like APEC, is a means to an end: the management of complex
interdependence. Constructivists, in turn, claim notably that East Asians are using ASEM to help speed up the process
of regional identity-building through inter-regional interaction. They argue that regions and nations are social
constructs, and identities and interests are not exogenously given but socially constructed. All these are created and
recreated in the process of a global transformation. From this perspective, ASEM is essentially a result of various forces
within Asia. Thus, Yeo Lay Hwee introduces his report commissioned by the Danish Institute of International Affairs.
The research report covers the following themes: The genesis of ASEM: A Historical Overview, The Inner Workings of
ASEM: Summits, Ministerial, and meetings. Facing reality: An empirical Assessment of ASEM. Into the Future:
Challenges and Prospects. ASEM and Asia-Europe Relations after 9/11. This is a valuable volume laying out various
explanations and uncovering the motives behind the creation of ASEM and how the theoretical optics influences our
view of each other.
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