Author: Derek HumPublisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 7
Book Description
Chinese policy toward the South China Sea conflict has often been considered inscrutable, or even worse, duplicitous. Foreign observers often accuse China of saying one thing (pledging peace) and doing another (hostile actions). However, an analysis of Chinese speeches suggests that there might be greater consistency in the Chinese approach than imagined. Specifically, we see that Chinese rhetoric broadly reflects three interrelated tensions: regional/non-regional, liberal/realist, economic/political. We see toward regional countries, China adopts a tone that is liberal tone that emphasises cooperation, dialogue, and mutual economic prosperity. On the other hand, it adopts a realist tone that emphasises political goals like sovereignty toward non-regional countries. This reflects a differentiated strategy possibly arising from a worldview that distinguishes between regional and non-regional countries. Such a strategy is problematic for Beijing to maintain, and further analysis of the interaction between regional and international drivers will be important in understanding future Chinese behaviour regarding the South China Sea issue, as well as others.