IS CHINA PURSUING A ‘REGIONAL’ HEGEMONY? STRATEGIC SOURCES OF CHINA’SASSERTIVE-CUM-BENEVOLENT BEHAVIOUR

Abstract

Purpose of the study: Besides analyzing multilateral fora and their importance for China’s ‘Asia Dream,’ this study celaborates on the strategic sources of China’s behavior in the Asia-Pacific and beyond and the strategic initiatives that it has taken to preserve and expand its influence. Methodology: This is a qualitative explanatory case study. The research is conducted using an embedded case study in which phenomena under investigation are analyzed at the individual, state, and system levels. Primary data in the form of speeches (mostly of President Xi Jinping) and white papers issued by the Chinese government are used. Main Findings: China’s contemporary behavior has not only made its foreign policy vital for the pursuance of its interests but has also been gauged by the regional states with a mix of skepticism and opportunism. On the one hand, China’s assertiveness is perceived as a threat by the regional and some extra-regional states, forcing them to pursue balancing and/or hedging strategies. On the other, they have capitalized upon Chinese-led multilateral initiatives to strengthen themselves by bringing their economies in alignment with that of China. The study deliberates the historical traditions of Tianxia and Neo-Confucianism and their impact on contemporary Chinese strategic thinking. The study finds that China's strategic behavior under President Xi Jinping has metamorphosed into an admix of assertiveness and benevolence carefully crafted to pursue its core interests – an aspiring benevolent ‘regional’ hegemon. Applications of this study: The study is useful for the students, scholars, and policy practitioners of International Relations and Area Studies, specifically those involved with China and the Asia Pacific. Novelty/Originality of this study: China has been accused of pursuing hegemonistic designs in the region and beyond. This study dissects this discourse while seeing whether those who are generating the discourse are benefitting from China’s overtures or not.