China’s foreign policy since the end of the Cold War has been characterised by an embracement of the international system. It is my reckoning that the success of this new foreign policy has indeed been exaggerated, but in order to give weight to this assumption, it is necessary to look at the key elements in shaping the foreign policy of the Beijing Government, and to discuss in turn the arguments for success and failure of each factor. I will also seek to examine each dynamic, including economic integration, multilateral and bilateral diplomacy and the issue of sovereignty, within the various schools of thought, in order to fully comprehend the interpretation of foreign policy success or exaggeration since the end of the Cold War.
Greater regional and global interdependence through trade and diplomacy is intrinsically linked to the steady economic rise in China. In addition to this, China’s decision to pursue international integration has been heavily influenced by the failure of the centralised, communist system in the former Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War and by the turning to capitalism by Eastern European countries. China has enjoyed a rapid growth for nearly 3 decades, and it is argued by some academics within an optimistic framework that the rise has been successful and that there is little evidence of the rise causing alarm. They concur that the material accomplishments internationally of opening up China’s economy to a free market system has benefitted many. Whilst it is true to say that the scale of the Chinese market has indeed generated business for companies within the East Asian region and globally (D Kang “Why Chinese Rise will be Peaceful”) and it is certainly appears to be evident that economic growth and domestic stability within China relies upon interaction and engagement with the regional and
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