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Begin New Search Political Geography China Content Type Journal Article

1131. China's Energy Policy: from Self-sufficiency to Energy Efficiency

Author:
François Godement
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The International Spectator
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
China's energy policy is traditionally based on self-sufficiency. While energy bottlenecks have often been cited as a limitation to China's economic growth, China has been successful at producing energy using its domestic coal - albeit putting a strain on transport and producing a high degree of pollution. Aggressively after 2001, China has started to search for external resources, both to supply its voracious appetite for oil and to insure its economy against possible geopolitical disruptions - including the threat of sanctions. This has given Chinese companies a life of their own, making them large international actors. Today, China is both saddled with new responsibilities for the developing countries in which it owns sizeable exploitation rights, and influenced by a new thinking on energy security, based on the idea of improving energy efficiency before developing resources. This offers opportunities for the West - and Japan - in cooperating with China, a huge energy importing country, to lessen the dominance of producers, create business opportunities for energy efficiency equipment, and also to cap CO2 and other emissions.
Topic:
Economics
Political Geography:
Japan and China

1132. New Trends in China's Foreign Investment Strategy

Author:
Lorenzo Sasso
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The International Spectator
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
China now holds the world's largest foreign exchange reserves mainly thanks to dynamic export activities. In order to invest and manage these foreign exchange reserves, the Chinese government recently announced the constitution of a new State Foreign Exchange Investment Company (SFEIC) aimed at improving the yield on them. This new investment vehicle will face multiple challenges ranging from showing solid financial gains to establishing effective rules for corporate governance that guarantee transparency in company management. In addition to the legal aspects, numerous economic and political implications will arise from this new government-controlled tool.
Topic:
Government and Governance
Political Geography:
China

1133. Cutting-Edge Knowledge of China's International Relations

Author:
Xu Xin
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The International Spectator
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
Review of: New directions in the study of China's foreign policy, edited by Alastair Iain Johnston and Robert S. Ross, Stanford University Press, 2006.
Topic:
International Relations and Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
China

1134. Stories of China: Italian Perspectives

Author:
Claudia Astarita
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The International Spectator
Institution:
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:
Review of: Il secolo cinese : storie di uomini, città e denaro dalla fabbrica del mondo, Federico Rampini, Mondadori, 2006 and La Cina alla conquista del mondo : la società, la politica, l'economia e le relazioni internazionali, Maria Weber, Newton Compton, 2006.
Political Geography:
China and Italy

1135. China's Foreign Policy toward North Korea—A US Perspective

Author:
Robert Sutter
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Journal of Korean Studies
Institution:
International Council on Korean Studies
Abstract:
With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the demise of East-West and Sino-Soviet competition for influence in the Korean peninsula after the cold war, Beijing adjusted Chinese relations to take advantage of economic and other opportunities with South Korea, while sustaining a leading international position in relations with North Korea. In contrast with steady Chinese efforts to use post cold war conditions in order to advance China's relations with South Korea, Chinese foreign policy toward North Korea has been characterized by reactive moves in response to abrupt and often provocative behavior of North Korea, and, to a lesser degree, the United States.
Political Geography:
United States, China, Beijing, North Korea, and Soviet Union

1136. A Nuclear Armed Korea as a Factor in Sino-American Relations

Author:
Elizabeth Van Vie Davis
Publication Date:
03-2007
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Journal of Korean Studies
Institution:
International Council on Korean Studies
Abstract:
Few things have changed China's foreign policy toward the United States more subtly than the issue of a nuclear Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea. The catalysts of these events were, on the one hand, the July 5, 2006, long-range missile test and the October 9, 2006, nuclear weapon test. On the other hand, the Six Party Talks that had been designed perhaps to prevent these very events have also been a catalyst to changes in US-China relations. In part these changes in Chinese foreign policy toward the US are because of changes within China itself. Partly these changes in Chinese foreign policy toward the US reflect China's changing role in the international system. And partly they are in response to US policy toward China. The nexus of these three elements has been a more respectful and open relationship between the two powers, but one still fraught with nuances and complexities.
Political Geography:
United States, China, America, and Korea

1137. Tokyo's Quandary, Beijing's Moment in the Six-Party Talks: A Regional Multilateral Approach to Resolve the DPRK's Nuclear Problem

Author:
Kuniko Ashizawa
Publication Date:
09-2006
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Pacific Affairs
Institution:
University of British Columbia
Abstract:
The record of Japan's diplomacy in the Six-Party Talks (SPT), the key multilateral mechanism to address North Korea's unflagging nuclear ambitions, is unpronounced. Tokyo's position in the SPT process has been often viewed as a secondary one, as if it was functioning as Washington's henchman, and at times as unproductive, thanks to its attempts to address the abductions issue in this multilateral setting. This represents an interesting contrast to China's SPT diplomacy, which has seen Beijing play an indispensable role, projecting itself as an honest broker. Further, the contrast between the two countries is intriguing when their general policies toward regional multilateral institutions over the past decade are taken into account. Both countries made a conspicuous shift in their attitudes toward regional multilateral institution-building, from negative and skeptical to positive and active. In the case of the SPT, a new multilateral institution in Asia, Tokyo's activism appeared to be muted, while Beijing positioned itself in a most visible manner. With this backdrop, the article examines Japanese policy making toward the SPT through a specific comparison with the country's general attitude toward regional institution-building and with China's SPT diplomacy. It argues that three aspects of the decision-making context—the nature of foreign policy questions, the composition of actors, and the type of available diplomatic tools—unique to Japan's dealings with the SPT essentially shaped its diplomacy and thus brought about a conspicuous contrast with its general attitude toward regional institution-building and with Beijing's growing regional activism.
Political Geography:
Japan, China, Washington, Beijing, Asia, North Korea, and Tokyo

1138. Australia, America and Asia

Author:
Mohan Malik
Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
University of British Columbia
Abstract:
This article examines the changing nature of Australian-American relations in the aftermath of the Iraq imbroglio and China's rise. While many observers see differences in Australian and US approaches toward China as a reflection of different interests, it is the contention of this paper that these different Australian-US perspectives on China are, in fact, premised more on some highly skewed assumptions and fallacious beliefs, misconceptions and myths that have lately come to underlie Australia's China policy than on divergent Australian-US interests. This article looks at the proposition that China's rise has the potential to divide Australia and America but concludes that Beijing is unlikely to succeed in driving a wedge between Washington and Canberra. The shared values and shared strategic interests ensure broad support for the Australia-US alliance in Australia which has now expanded into a global partnership encompassing the transnational security issues as well as the traditional geopolitical issues of managing the rise of new powers.
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
China, America, Beijing, Asia, and Australia
Publication Identifier:
1337-5482
Publication Identifier Type:
ISSN

1139. Australia, the US and East Asia: Are Close Ties with the Bush Administration Beneficial?

Author:
Mark Beeson
Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
University of British Columbia
Abstract:
Australian policymakers have traditionally made cultivating close strategic ties with the dominant power of the era the centerpiece of foreign policy. As Australia's prominent role in the "coalition of the willing" in Iraq demonstrates, this strategy is alive and well. It is, however, no longer clear whether this strategy is in either Australia's national interest or that of the international community more generally. I argue that, in reality, close ties with the current Bush administration have been costly and may further complicate Australia's relations with an East Asian region in which China is becoming an increasingly important actor.
Political Geography:
China, East Asia, and Australia

1140. In Medias Res: The Development of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as a Security Community

Author:
Marc Lanteigne
Publication Date:
12-2006
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
University of British Columbia
Abstract:
As the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation observed its fifth anniversary in June 2006, the question of where the regime fits within the expanding area of international strategic institutions in Asia and elsewhere assumes an even greater importance. The SCO has begun to establish itself as a more formal actor in the complex area of Eurasian security, and has evolved from a largely consultative grouping into a security community. As well, the SCO has become the cornerstone of China's Central Asian diplomacy and its promotion of "non-alliance" forms of strategic cooperation. However, despite the SCO's endeavours to portray itself as a forum for information-sharing and confidence-building, as well as political and economic cooperation, hard power considerations remain an important part of the organisation's policymaking. Although the SCO was seen as marginalized when Western forces entered Central Asia after September 2001, the organisation plays key roles and should not be dismissed as a strategic actor and source of regional cooperation. Moreover, with American forces remaining in Central Asia for the foreseeable future and Central Asian governments becoming increasingly concerned about the potential after-shocks of the recent "colour revolutions" in the former USSR, there is the greater possibility that a more mature SCO may engage in overt power-balancing behaviour vis-à-vis the West, resulting in rivalries rather than cooperation. To prevent this scenario, it is argued that the international community should take the opportunity to better engage the SCO in the name of promoting peace and stability in Eurasia.
Topic:
Government
Political Geography:
China, America, Central Asia, and Eurasia