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Series on Contemporary China
(ISSN: 1793-0847)
Series Editors: Joseph Fewsmith (Boston University)
Zheng Yongnian (East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore)
This series showcases the most significant and lasting contributions to scholarship in the studies of China’s politics, society, and culture — whether for general readers or specialists. Each of the volumes is a quality work by a leading scholar or scholars in the field and may take the form of a research monograph, a multi-author edited volume, a conference proceeding, a textbook, or an annual review, among others. While the focus is on China, the series does not lose sight of the interplay of other regional and global forces and their influence and impact on China.
Published∗
Vol. 46A Critical Decade: China’s Foreign Policy (2008–2018) by Zhiqun Zhu
Vol. 45China’s Omnidirectional Peripheral Diplomacy edited by Jianwei Wang & Tiang Boon Hoo
Vol. 44Reform and Development in China: After 40 Years edited by Wei Shan & Lijun Yang
Vol. 43The South China Sea Disputes and the U.S.–China Contest International Law and Geopolitics by James C Hsiung
Vol. 42The South China Sea Disputes: Historical, Geopolitical and Legal Studies edited by Tsu-Sung Hsieh
Vol. 41Moralization of China by Xin Liu
Vol. 40Social Construction in Contemporary China edited by Xueyi Lu
Vol. 39China’s Economic Statecraft: Co-optation, Cooperation, and Coercion edited by Mingjiang Li
Vol. 38The Domestic Dynamics of China’s Energy Diplomacy by Chi Zhang
Vol. 37Understanding Chinese Society: Changes and Transformations by Eileen Yuk-ha Tsang
Vol. 36Health Policy Reform in China: A Comparative Perspective by Jiwei Qian & Åke Blomqvist
∗To view the complete list of the published volumes in the series, please visit: http://www.worldscientific.com/series/scc
Published by
World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Zhu, Zhiqun, author.
Title: A critical decade : China’s foreign policy (2008–2018) / by Zhiqun Zhu (Bucknell University, USA).
Description: New Jersey : World Scientific, 2019. | Series: Series on contemporary China ; volume 46 | Includes bibliographical references.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019013761 | ISBN 9789811200779 (hc)
Subjects: LCSH: China--Foreign relations--1976–
Classification: LCC DS779.27 .Z4893 2019 | DDC 327.51009/0512--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019013761
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Copyright © 2020 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
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Preface
This book is a preliminary study of Chinese foreign policy during the critical decade of 2008–2018. This decade witnessed China’s rapid rise from a regional power to a global power, beginning with the extravagant Summer Olympics in Beijing and ending with fierce economic and strategic rivalry between the United States and China. So many significant and impactful events happened in the world between 2008 and 2018 that this decade is going to be a focus of study by international relations scholars, historians, and others for years to come.
It was during this decade that China’s role in global affairs became more prominent, generating both fear and admiration. This original study of China’s external affairs during the important decade attempts to highlight some major characteristics of Chinese foreign policy. It is not a typical research monograph with a principal argument or theoretical innovation; rather, it includes my scholarly and policy writings and observations about Chinese foreign policy, taking stock of changing domestic and international environments. A central question that runs throughout the book is what major challenges China faced during the decade and is likely to face in the years ahead. The book does not study Chinese foreign policy comprehensively, but offers a unique and hopefully interesting perspective from a serious student of international relations on some of the key issues and challenges related to Chinese foreign policy. I do not intend to break new ground or propose a novel theory, but the book may serve as a supplement to other rigorous scholarly research on Chinese foreign policy and could be a useful reference for readers who study Chinese politics and foreign policy during the critical decade of 2008–2018.
As an English major at the prestigious Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) in the mid-1980s, I did not plan my future career to be a Professor of International Relations and Political Science. Most SISU graduates in the 1980s were directly recruited by Chinese central and provincial governments, working in fields that required proficiency in foreign languages, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of State Security, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Education, provincial or municipal offices of foreign affairs, state banks, major state-owned import and export companies, and national media organizations. As a top graduate, I was fortunate to be offered a teaching position at my alma mater when I finished my BA degree in 1988. (Nowadays it is virtually impossible to secure a teaching position at Chinese universities without a PhD or other terminal degrees.) While teaching English reading and grammar, I also served as SISU’s secretary for international cooperation from 1988 to 1991, responsible for the University’s international exchange programs with universities in English-speaking countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. This was the period during which I developed a strong interest in educational and cultural exchanges between China and other countries. Such “low politics” are often neglected when one looks at state-to-state relations in international politics, yet they are a crucial component