The rise of the People’s Republic of China and Beijing’s hegemonic aspirations pose a challenge to academic research, constituting an issue that is worth of interest and analysis for its...Show moreThe rise of the People’s Republic of China and Beijing’s hegemonic aspirations pose a challenge to academic research, constituting an issue that is worth of interest and analysis for its implications on international relations. This work targets two elements in Chinese foreign politics: the Community of Shared Future for Mankind and the Near-Seas Strategy, each of which has a major role in Beijing’s relations with other countries. Moreover, this thesis proposes that the relation between the two elements is hitherto unexplored and warrants for further investigation, for these topics often recur in IR literature, but only independently. Therefore, it sets to understand the nature of such relation, through an analysis that is both numerical and qualitative – highlighting their meaning, components and implications – as well as an interpretation through the concept of Harmony. The analysis will show that documents and discourses concerning the Community of Shared Future for Mankind focus mostly on peaceful development and (win-win) cooperation, whereas the Near-Seas Strategy expresses and addresses Beijing’s concerns in the South Chinas Sea and towards the ongoing disputes with other countries in the area, namely Taiwan. Finally, the interpretation through the concept of Harmony will shed a light on their coherency towards the goal of a Harmonious society.Show less
This thesis deals with Chinese foreign policy in Eastern Europe. In the recent years China has been investing heavily in countries like Hungary, especially in connection with the One Belt One Road,...Show moreThis thesis deals with Chinese foreign policy in Eastern Europe. In the recent years China has been investing heavily in countries like Hungary, especially in connection with the One Belt One Road, a grand infrastructure project with the aim of connecting China with Europe via Central Asia. The Chinese economic and political presence in Europe has stirred controversy in the context of intra-European East-West divides. The thesis looks into what kind of powers China is gaining in Europe over Hungary and over the European Union, using the Chinese-funded Budapest-Belgrade railway as a case study. It emerges that China has gained compulsory, institutional, productive and structural power over Hungary.Show less
China’s intent to increasingly promote infrastructural large projects abroad, in particular. High-Speed Rails, has raised concerns on the implications on China’s rise. Offensive Realists that are...Show moreChina’s intent to increasingly promote infrastructural large projects abroad, in particular. High-Speed Rails, has raised concerns on the implications on China’s rise. Offensive Realists that are concerned with power calculations see a strategy in which China enforces its power on other nations through soft power, while other scholars see China’s High-Speed Rail Diplomacy as an attempt for the Chinese government to present their benevolence and good intentions. As High-Speed Rail Diplomacy is a fairly recent development, there has yet to be ample research done on the topic. In particular existing theories in “conventional” International Relations theory fail to fully explain the case of High-Speed Rail Diplomacy in Southeast Asia. What's interesting about China’s High-Speed Rail Diplomacy in Southeast Asia is that although territorial disputes have shaken the relationships of both China and Southeast Asian nations, there seems to be no tension in negotiations about infrastructural projects. Quite the opposite is happening, as both Southeast Asian Nations and China encourage bilateral negotiations when it comes to infrastructural projects. Current accounts on High-Speed Rail Diplomacy only view the development between a stark dichotomy between “good” or “bad”, failing in formulating statements to China’s state behaviour and its perspectives on its own rise. This research intends to introduce the theories of processual constructivism, which include the process approach and relationality theory, to the discussion on High-Speed Rail Diplomacy and China’s outbound infrastructure investment strategy. Finally, the theoretical framework of processual constructivism and its views on relationality will be applied to the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway project to illustrate how projects like these are a way for the Chinese government to operationalize a “peaceful Rise”.Show less
