"This book explains the fundamental contradiction in China's foreign policy: contrary to its claims, China does not consistently uphold the principle of state control in its international affairs. This inconsistency is shaping China's impact on the international order. This anthropological study of the foreign policymaking of the opaque Chinese party-state examines three case comparisons: the Responsibility to Protect, Hong Kong and the World Trade Organization. Based on in-depth interviews with party-state officials and an analysis of official documents, the book reveals the internal discussions, diverse set of interests, and dynamics and processes of a party-state in a state of constant transformation. The book demonstrates how competing sources of the Chinese Communist Party's domestic legitimacy combine with the complex and dynamic structure of the Chinese party-state, resulting in contradictory foreign policies. It demonstrates how both legitimization and the party-state structure constitute vulnerabilities of the party-state. Even though China struggles with these domestic vulnerabilities, this does not prevent it from projecting its power internationally or shaping the global order. The book argues that two sets of domestic vulnerabilities explain China's contradictory foreign policy and undermine its ability to project and promote a "China Model" as an alternative to the existing international order. China's contradictory foreign policy is likely to lead to a more particularistic, plural and fragmented international order"--

China's rise to great power status is indisputable but can it shape the future international order? This question remains widely debated because China's foreign policy is contradictory. Contrary to conventional wisdom, this book shows that China does not act from a position of strength, but that foreign policy contradictions are the result of the domestic vulnerabilities of the ruling Chinese Communist Party. Providing exceptional insights into the considerationsbehind the opaque institutional structures of Chinese foreign policymaking and decision making, it shows that China will not provide a "model" for a new international system, but could undermine the existing order.

The book presents the views of leading Chinese and American scholars working in the fields of Chinese foreign policy, national security and international political economy. It seeks to challenge the conventional wisdom about China's recent rise, contending it is a much more complex and contested trend than it has often been portrayed to be.

A long overdue contribution to the study of Cold War history and Chinese foreign policy, "Contending with Contradictions" provides an incisive interpretation of China's relations with Poland and its irreversible impact on the communist world. Mercy A. Kuo provides a unique contribution to the miniscule corpus of literature on the subject. Her approach is threefold: Kuo offers a comprehensive interpretation of the historical relevance of the PRC's policy towards Soviet Eastern Europe during this era; she sheds new light on the intentions of the Chinese Communist Party; and, finally, her research for the book was based on an archival approach, utilizing post - 1989 declassified sources. Because this area of Cold War history has long been understudied -- and certainly without the benefit of newly available archival materials -- Kuo's study is the first of its kind.

This article traces China’s foreign policy transformation from 2013 to the present. It also examines Deng Xiaoping’s doctrinal response to the political crises of 1989–91 and compares it to current Chinese foreign policy doctrines. From the early 1980s until the 2010s, China’s foreign policy has generally focused on keeping a low profile. Deng’s Tao Guang Yang Hui foreign policy doctrine is characterized by its “No’s”, while Xi Jinping’s Xin Xing is marked by its “New’s”. The move from Tao Guang Yang Hui to Xin Xing is a major doctrinal shift in China’s foreign policy. Since the 19th Party Congress in 2017, Xi’s “new” narratives have seemingly dominated Chinese foreign policy. However, old principles, particularly that of “non-interference” or “no hegemony”, are still alive, albeit in a different form. This transformation is driven by three forces, which this paper describes in the 3As framework: China’s Ambition to be a “great country” and a “non-hegemon” in a changing world; its provision of Alternatives to fill the gaps in regional and global governance structures; and its Adaptation to what it deems as “unprecedented major changes in a century” (Da Bian Ju). As China undergoes this foreign policy transformation, contradictions and dilemmas inevitably emerge. While China’s foreign policy transformation is currently being disrupted by the coronavirus crisis, there have been adjustments which were already apparent before the crisis. The ambitious “One Belt and One Road” strategy, for instance, was replaced by the “Belt and Road Initiative”; “constructive intervention” was replaced by “constructive role”; and “common destiny” was replaced by “shared future”. Looking ahead, China’s foreign policy transformation could include more strategic or, at least, tactical adjustments.

China is rightly considered an emerging power in world affairs as Chinese leaders, backed by growing economic and military strength, engage in innovative diplomatic approaches that pave the way for China's international role. But this is only part of the story of China’s rise. As Robert G. Sutter shows in this meticulous and balanced assessment, the record of twists and turns in Chinese foreign relations since the end of the Cold War highlights a very different perspective. Domestic problems, nationalism, and security concerns continue to preoccupy Beijing, complicating China's influence and innovations in foreign affairs. On the international front, the actions of other powerful nations and growing dependence on the world economy complicate as well as enhance China’s advance to international prominence. Newly revised, this edition features more extensive treatment of China’s role in the international economy and greater discussion of its relations with the developing world. Providing a comprehensive introduction to Chinese foreign relations, Sutter shows Chinese leaders exerting growing influence in world affairs but remaining far from dominant. Facing numerous contradictions and trade-offs, they move cautiously to avoid major confrontations, costly commitments, or mistakes that could undermine their one-party rule as they deal with an international environment posing numerous challenges as well as opportunities for Chinese interests.

The relationship of China and the outside world for nearly a century is full of twists and turns and changes. For the Chinese nation, it's a memory with unforgettable sadness and happiness. As China developed from a semi-feudal, semi-colonial country to an independent socialist country and to a powerful big country in the world, the Western-dominated international system has had a dramatic change in their attitudes towards China, from contempt and exploitation to hostile confrontation and blockade, and to multiple and complex means including both cooperation, dialogue and pressure. Before the founding of New China, China's diplomacy was by no means a "e;blank area"e;. No matter the military contacts of Yanan revolutionaries led by Mao Zedong with relevant U.S. authorities, or Zhou Enlai's work towards the Western Leftist, or the complex learning process of CPC with the Communist International, or even China and Soviet's war against Japan and the multiple coordination in regaining the sovereign rights over the northeastern China, all share the nature of foreign affairs, an embryonic form of "e;international relations"e;. It was an important "e;pre-history"e; of the external relations for contemporary China, a period of preparation and adaptation for New China's foreign policy. Therefore, making analysis of New China's diplomatic orientation should not ignore reviewing this part of history. In Mao's era, earthshaking changes had taken place in China's foreign relations compared with the situation of Chiang Kai-shek regime. Chinese people stood up and this country will no longer be trampled upon and insulted at will. There were some important strategic initiatives and creations worth to be memorized and respected, such as the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, the exchanges with the U.S., and the Three Worlds theory. However, due to the special situation both home and abroad, the Cold War pattern and the guideline to continue the revolution in particular, China's relations with the world were always in the state of tension and confrontation during the first thirty years after the founding; China was quite marginalized in the international system, with its international image more of a rebel than a constructor. Three decades since Deng Xiaoping launched the reform and opening up policy, China has become one of the most important beneficiaries of economic globalization and one of the most important engines for world economy. The guideline focused on domestic economic development and people's wellbeing also led to adjustments in China's foreign relations and entire international strategy. Chinese economy stepped away from the brink of collapse and developed at a high growth rate, filled with vitality; the majority of Chinese people got rid of poverty and backwardness that had long plagued them, and made a historical leap towards modest prosperity, with increasing awareness of autonomy and legal rights; Chinese diplomacy was no longer passive and contradictory as in the Cultural Revolution, but emerged with the momentum of a big power, firm, calm, targeted and imaginative. No matter how many problems and contradictions occurred in the running-in period, China's relationship with the world is advancing towards a positive and constructive direction. China and the world are more and more closely linked with each other, and the progress of China constitutes one of the most significant achievements of the international system. Domestic and foreign affairs are always closely related. For the past sixty years since the founding of New China, though subject to the changes of international pattern, Chinese diplomacy has been a direct continuation of domestic political guidelines and the overall situation, no matter problems or achievements. "e;If you want to work with iron, you must be tough yourself."e; The way China designs and shapes itself will fundamentally determine the Chinese view and responses to the outside world. China's progress itself directly affects the development and evolution of foreign relations. Based on the observation of China's development since the latter half of the 20th century, we have reason to be optimistic about the future of relations between China and the world.