Morris Rossabi, Sergei Blagov, Migeddorj Batchimeg, Alicia Campi, and Wang Wei-Fang
Publication Date:
05-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
Just before the 2005 Tsagaan Sar (or New Year's) celebrations, a Mongolian government official urged his fellow citizens not to buy Chinese gifts for relatives and friends because if they did he estimated that $30 million would enter China's coffer.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
You Ji, Willy Lam, Tarique Niazi, and John C.k. Daly
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
It is not surprising that President Hu Jintao and his colleagues decided in mid-April to cool down anti-Japanese protests: a body blow has been dealt to China's reputation as a responsible member of the global community. The fact that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) administration was close to losing control over xenophobic crowds has again alerted Beijing to the reality that nationalism is a double-edged sword. There are also signs that CCP factions not allied with Hu and his sidekick, Premier Wen Jiabao, have used the worsening crisis with Japan to fault the way that the Hu-Wen team has conducted its foreign policy.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Mohan Malik, Frank Ching, Willy Lam, and William R. Hawkins
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
One of Beijing's worst nightmares seems to be coming true. Having apparently steadied the course in the Middle East, the Bush administration is turning to Asia to tame its long-standing “strategic competitor.” While this particular term has been shelved since 9/11 – and Sino-U.S. relations have improved thanks to China's cooperation with Washington's global anti-terrorist campaign – there are signs at least from Beijing's perspective that Washington is spearheading multi-pronged tactics to contain the fast-rising Asian giant.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Next month is the 50th anniversary of the Bandung Conference, where Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and Indonesian President Sukarno set out to carve a space for Asian and African countries based on principles of mutual interest, respect for national sovereignty and non-alignment with either the United States or the Soviet Union. In 1955, an economically and politically isolated China aspired to economic self-sufficiency through a closed, planned economy that was not dependent on imported food or other raw materials.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Frank Ching, Eugene Kogan, Willy Lam, and Richard A. Bitzinger
Publication Date:
03-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
The saga of Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's fall from grace has highlighted Beijing's tightening grip over the Special Administrative Region (SAR), as well as the dicey future of the “one country, two systems” model. While Tung indicated last Thursday that he had submitted his resignation to Beijing earlier that day because of failing health, news about his impending departure had already been splashed across the Hong Kong papers on March 2
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Willy Lam, Arnold Zeitlin, Mikyoung Kim, and Ahmad Lutfi
Publication Date:
03-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
The likelihood of Beijing putting more pressure on Pyongyang regarding the nuclear issue has decreased given Hu Jintao's perception that a plethora of “anti-China” actions have been emanating from the Bush administration. This has increased the possibility of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) flaunting the North Korean card against America's so-called containment policy against China – as well as Washington's harder line on Iran
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
You Ji, Bernard D. Cole, Tarique Niazi, and Tai Ming Cheung
Publication Date:
02-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
As a maritime power, China's naval developments remain an issue of intense interest for Western policymakers as its meteoric economic development paves the way for China's transformation as a major global power. In light of Beijing's quest to secure energy resources, its extensive maritime seaboard, and unresolved territorial disputes, Chinese naval interests deserve continued attention. Undoubtedly, the People's Liberation Army Navy's (PLAN) ability to adequately defend China's sea lines of communication (SLOCs) will be critical to protecting its overseas interests. Jamestown is proud to present this special issue of China Brief on Chinese naval developments and maritime strategy.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Wenran Jiang, Willy Lam, William R. Hawkins, and Anthony Smith
Publication Date:
02-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
If one theme characterizes Thailand's foreign policy, it is the ability to take advantage of the rivalries of larger powers. Skillfully avoiding occupation during various colonial enterprises, Thai foreign policy has cleverly sensed the prevailing winds and adapted accordingly. Thailand's close relationship with China – arguably one of the closest in Southeast Asia – sits alongside an alliance relationship with the United States. But the re-emergence of substantial independence sentiment in Thailand's southern provinces has now put Thai diplomacy to the test. Although there is no direct link, in a sense Thailand's separatist problem parallels China's own difficulties in Xinjiang. Thailand's latest challenge, this time domestic, finds that country sharing something of a similar strategic outlook to China.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
Eric Hagt, Willy Lam, Drew Thompson, Gill Bates, Daniel C. Lynch, and Chen Yali
Publication Date:
01-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
The good news about the Taiwan Legislative Yuan elections last month, from the perspective of Beijing, Washington, and at least half of the Taiwan electorate, is that nothing will happen. Chen Shui-bian and his pan-green coalition remained a legislative minority, meaning a radical push ahead for more sovereignty – and the instabilities that might bring for cross-Strait relations – does not appear in the cards for now.
Topic:
International Relations, Government, and Political Economy
This essay argues that crosscutting allegiances between managers and workers, and between existing workers and ex-workers, have formed strong social and psychological bases for sustained collective action and inaction during a period of organizational transformation in contemporary China. This thesis challenges the conventional wisdom that implies either class formation during marketization or the failure of such as an explanation for the alleged limits of the working class in mobilizing to defend its social contract against the central state. Through in-depth case studies of Chinese oilfields and refineries, I identify patterns of fragmentation deriving from intergenerational differences among the workers, managerial incentive structures, and the continuing reworking of patron-client relations between subgroups of workers and managers. I conclude that managers' and workers' passive and active responses to the state's rapid dismantling of the socialist notion of “class” in a self-sufficient work unit have placed a tangible social limit on authoritarian institutional innovation.