Table Of ContentChinese Scholars and
Foreign Policy
How does China see the rest of the world? One way to answer this question is to look at the
work of China’s scholars in the field of International Relations (IR). This leads to a second
question – to what extent do Chinese IR scholars influence Beijing’s foreign policy and
outlook? The contributors to this book seek to answer these key questions, drawing on their
own first- and second-hand experiences of involvement in scholarly IR debates in China.
Discussing fundamental aspects of China’s foreign policy, such as China’s view of the
international structure, soft power projection, maritime disputes, and the principle of
noninterference, this book provides insights into the hinterland of Chinese foreign p olicy
making. It is an invaluable reference for global IR scholars, especially those with a direct interest
in understanding and predicting China’s actions and reactions on a range of international
issues.
Huiyun Feng is a senior lecturer in the School of Government and International Relations at
Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia. She is a former Jennings Randolph Peace Scholar at
the United States Institute of Peace. Her publications have appeared in the European Journal
of International Relations, Security Studies, The Pacific Review, International Politics, Chinese
Journal of International Politics, and Asian Perspective. She is the author of Chinese Strategic
Culture and Foreign Policy Decision-Making: Confucianism, Leadership and War (Routledge,
2007) and the coauthor of Prospect Theory and Foreign Policy Analysis in the Asia Pacific:
Rational Leaders and Risky Behavior (Routledge, 2013).
Kai He is a professor of International Relations in the Griffith Asia Institute and Centre
for Governance and Public Policy at Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia. He is currently
an Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellow (2017–2020). He was a postdoctoral
fellow in the Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program (2009–2010). He is the author
of Institutional Balancing in the Asia Pacific: Economic Interdependence and China’s Rise
(Routledge, 2009), the coauthor of Prospect Theory and Foreign Policy Analysis in the Asia
Pacific: Rational Leaders and Risky Behavior (Routledge, 2013), and the author of China’s
Crisis Behavior: Political Survival and Foreign Policy (Cambridge, 2016).
Yan Xuetong is the dean and distinguished professor in the Institute of International R elations
at Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. He also serves as the Secretary General of the World
Peace Forum and the editor-in-chief of the Chinese Journal of International Politics. He is
the Vice Chairman of both the China Association of International Relations Studies and the
China Association of American Studies, in addition to serving as a member of the Consultation
Committee in the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC. Professor Yan received his PhD in politi-
cal science from the University of California, Berkeley in 1992. He is the author of many books
and articles, including Ancient Chinese Thought, Modern Chinese Power (Princeton, 2011).
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Chinese Scholars and Foreign Policy
Debating International Relations
Edited by Huiyun Feng, Kai He and Yan Xuetong
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Chinese Scholars and
Foreign Policy
Debating International Relations
Edited by Huiyun Feng,
Kai He and Yan Xuetong
First published 2019
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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© 2019 selection and editorial matter, Huiyun Feng, Kai He and
Yan Xuetong; individual chapters, the contributors
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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Feng, Huiyun, 1971– editor. | He, Kai, editor. |
Yan, Xuetong, editor.
Title: Chinese scholars and foreign policy: debating international
relations / edited by Huiyun Feng, Kai He and Yan Xuetong.
Description: First edition. | London; New York, NY: Routledge/
Taylor & Francis Group, 2019. | Series: Routledge studies on Asia
in the world | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018046345 | ISBN 9780367140083 (hardback) |
ISBN 9780429029738 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: International relations—Study and teaching—China. |
International relations—Research—China. | China—Foreign relations. |
Scholars—China.
Classification: LCC JZ1238.C5 C55 2019 | DDC 327.072/051—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018046345
ISBN: 978-0-367-14008-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-429-02973-8 (ebk)
Typeset in Galliard
by codeMantra
Contents
List of figures vii
Acknowledgments ix
List of Contributors xi
List of Abbreviations xv
Introduction 1
1 Why do Chinese IR scholars matter? 3
HUIYUN FENG AND KAI HE
SECTION I
Key concepts debates 21
2 How do Chinese scholars view the evolution of
international structure? 23
ZHOU FANGYIN
3 China debates soft power: implications for Chinese
foreign policy 44
LI MINGJIANG
4 The debates among Chinese IR scholars on China’s
national interest strategy 63
CHEN QI AND LIU LANYU
5 China debates on the non-interference principle 86
CHEN ZHENG
vi Contents
SECTION II
Key policies debates 107
6 To ally or not to ally? Debating China’s non-alliance
strategy in the twenty-first century 109
LIU RUONAN AND LIU FENG
7 Preference expression under political constraints:
an analysis of debates about China’s use of force 127
YIN JIWU
8 Chinese scholars’ debate on maritime dispute strategies 152
ZUO XIYING
9 China’s debates on economic diplomacy 173
SONG GUOYOU
Conclusion 191
10 Rethinking the role of scholars in Chinese foreign policy 193
KAI HE, HUIYUN FENG, AND YAN XUETONG
Index 205
List of figures
5.1 Debating the Non-interference Principle in China 97
8.1 Change Mechanisms 166
Acknowledgments
How to understand China’s rise and its implications for Asia and the world is
an imperative task for both scholars and policy makers. China has become the
second largest economy next to the United States since 2010. China is also the
major trading partner for over 140 countries in the world. As United States–
China relations will define the next century, it is essential to build mutual
understanding for policy makers.
With generous support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
Foundation (Grant No. 16-1512-150509-IPS), the Griffith Asia Institute has
collaborated successfully with Tsinghua University’s Institute of International
Relations to carry out a research project, entitled “Understanding the Rise of
China through the Eyes of Chinese IR Scholars”. This project aims to make
sense of China’s rise in world politics through examining Chinese International
Relations (IR) scholars’ perceptions and debates on key issues in international
relations and Asian security. It is also intended to bridge the perception gap
between China and the outside world.
This edited volume is a product of “The Griffith-Tsinghua Conference: Chinese
Debate International Relations”, hosted by Tsinghua University on D ecember
11–12, 2016. We hope that it will shed some light on our understanding of
Chinese IR scholars, especially regarding how they perceive world politics and
how they can influence Chinese policy making via their internal debates.
We appreciate the institutional support from Griffith University and Tsinghua
University as well as the efforts of their skillful staff for successfully o rganizing a
two-day conference in Beijing in 2016. Personally, we are grateful to the contributors
in this volume as well as all of the participants in the conference for their innovative
contributions, sharp comments, and constructive suggestions on the project. We
would also like to thank Stephen Walker, a mentor, friend, and advisor to this pro-
ject, for his suggestions and advice as always. We are grateful to Daniela Di Piramo,
who provided professional editorial assistance for this project. We would also like to
thank Dr. John Fei and Dr. Angela Schlater, our program officers at the MacArthur
Foundation, for their support for this project. At the publication stage, we appre-
ciate the support and encouragement from Simon Bates, our editor at Routledge.
Huiyun Feng, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia
Kai He, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia
Yan Xuetong, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
