{"title":"Navigating the Indo-Pacific: Vietnam's Hedging Strategies Amid the Geopolitical Rivalry Between China and the United States","authors":"Xiangning Wu, Joseph Ching Velasco","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919883","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919883","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Vietnam has implemented hedging strategies in response to the geopolitical rivalry between China and the United States in the Indo-Pacific region. While the uncertainty from the dynamics of the Sino–US rivalry has been widely acknowledged, we examine how Vietnam's hedging strategy is also calibrated toward ongoing domestic political developments. We argue that while the international environment determines the overall structure of Vietnam's geopolitical hedging strategy, domestic factors, such as the success of Doi Moi, the interaction of party factions, and disagreements among public elites, influence the breadth of this strategy. Current global exigencies and internal domestic concerns require Hanoi to intelligently and delicately calibrate its interactions with great powers with little margin for error.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140520869","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"China's State Capitalism and International Responses: A Comparative Analysis of Infrastructure Investment Strategies","authors":"Maxmilian Rech","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919881","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919881","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: By introducing the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), an international infrastructure investment strategy, China attracted a lot of attention. China's approach to state capitalism has opened a window of opportunity for other infrastructure investment strategies. In response, the world's largest and liberally minded economies, such as the United States of America, Japan, and the European Union, have focused on connectivity and embarked on similar strategies. In this article, I conduct a comparative analysis of infrastructure investment strategies. I analyze key tenets of the BRI and international responses through the prism of principles, priorities, funding, financing, governance, and implementation. The comparison of strategies highlights more commonalities than differences, and I identify several instances in which liberal economies act in contradiction to their variety of capitalism. The results suggest that China has opened a window of opportunity for proactive infrastructure investment strategies, and major economies have responded in kind. With overlapping emphases in similar geographic regions, these strategies lead to competition. Consequently, recipient countries profit from an advantageous negotiating position when seeking to attract foreign direct investment in infrastructure projects.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140518457","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Enrique Martínez‐Galán, Francisco José B.S. Leandro
{"title":"A Qualitative Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Maritime Silk Road in Europe: Who Benefits from the Initiative and Who Does Not","authors":"Enrique Martínez‐Galán, Francisco José B.S. Leandro","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919880","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919880","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: China has traditionally been regarded as a continental power. However, the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (MSR), launched in 2013, shapes China's intention to become a global maritime power. The initiative is the most significant contribution to increasing global maritime connectivity in recent decades. The volume and impact of Chinese investments in Europe's seaports are remarkable. This article proposes a fundamental framework to assess who benefits from the initiative. Since quantitative cost-benefit analyses (CBA) hardly apply to multifaceted and partially unquantifiable phenomena, we suggest assessing the MSR by means of a comprehensive qualitative CBA. We opted for a qualitative CBA due to ontological and epistemological reasons: on the one hand, the complex and multilayered nature of the problem is difficult to monetize, and, on the other hand, our argument is not final, as it attempts to assess a given policy before its implementation is sufficiently mature. In this vein, we apply the problem-solving methodology 'analytic hierarchy process'. While the media have disproportionately stressed the negative effects of the MSR, we conclude under this framework that (i) for China, MSR benefits largely outweigh associated costs; (ii) for participating countries, MSR benefits outweigh the associated costs only after cost-mitigating measures are incorporated; and (iii) for non-participating countries, MSR costs outweigh associated benefits.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140526256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of Engaging China","authors":"Anne F. Thurston","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a920613","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a920613","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140526024","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"\"Let's Not Jump\"","authors":"David M. Lampton","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a920614","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a920614","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140516422","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Chinese Investments and Involvement in Strategic Sectors and Infrastructure Development Across Europe: Europe's Hybrid Relationship with China Beyond the BRI—Introduction to the Special Issue","authors":"Niall Duggan, Ágnes Szunomár","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919879","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919879","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140516884","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Exploring Chinese Investments in Europe: Scope and Governance Dynamics","authors":"Carlos Raul Lima da Frota Araújo","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919882","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919882","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Chinese investments in Europe have been significant over the past decade, with almost US$455 billion spent on investments in several sectors, according to the China Global Investment Tracker. Notably, a great portion of these investments are driven by the Belt and Road Initiative. This study analyzes China's investments, identifying the main beneficiaries based on relative economic size and assessing the impact of governance indicators. It employs panel data regression to examine the impact of Chinese investments in 15 European countries from 2011 to 2020. Results indicate that smaller economies and those with lower scores for voice and accountability received a greater proportion of Chinese investments relative to their economic size. Serbia, Belarus, and Ukraine are in the top four list of countries. These findings suggest that China's investment decisions in Europe are not solely determined by governance indicators. Consequently, countries with lower scores have the potential to receive investments and foster economic growth, offering an alternative to conventional methods of attracting foreign investments.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140521564","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ethnic Return Migrants in Korea and Japan: A Comparative Study of Nationalism and Citizenship","authors":"Zeljana Zmire","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919885","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919885","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: This study explores the complicated nature of the citizenship of ethnic return migrants from Japan and Korea, Nikkeijin and Joseonjok. It aims to contribute to the scholarship by demonstrating that racism and nationalism are layered concepts by examining the reasons why Nikkeijin and Joseonjok enjoy preferential treatment to some extent but at the same time become targets of discrimination in Korea and Japan. I draw on Christian Joppke's position that citizenship is composed not only of legal status but also of social and identity elements and utilize two relatively novel concepts that shed new light on the complex nature of Nikkeijin and Joseonjok citizenship. One is Takeyuki Tsuda's concept of ethnoracism, which helps capture the type of racism aimed at groups that are not racially distinct but whose ostensible background differences are essentialized as inferior. The other is Gil-Soo Han's nouveau-riche nationalism, which argues that migrants are evaluated according to the global and developmental status of their country of origin. This comparative analysis helps demonstrate how the lives of Joseonjok and Nikkeijin are shaped by multiple layers of nationalism, racism, and status perceptions in their respective countries of residence.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140517071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Rebooting Tourism in Vietnam: The Ho Tram Strip","authors":"John Hutnyk","doi":"10.1353/apr.2024.a919884","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1353/apr.2024.a919884","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Over many years, the Government of Vietnam made various statements on the importance of sustainability and tourism sector growth. Corporate tourism developers quickly followed suit with similar rhetoric, as did some sociological scholarship—at times promoting tourism uncritically and sometimes critiquing it unapologetically. This article is based on ethnographic observations of casino tourism development along the Hồ Tràm strip on the South-eastern Vietnamese coastline, both before and during COVID-19, as well as close commentary monitoring government statements, corporate press, and promotional sociological studies within tourism management. The article addresses target markets for casino tourism, planning, infrastructure, issues for workers in associated sectors, and environmental ecosystems with longer, toxic histories. What 'sustainability' means after COVID-19 might be questioned in the 'rebooting' of the tourism economy.","PeriodicalId":45424,"journal":{"name":"Asian Perspective","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140518216","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}