"Making Sense Of China’s Belt And Road Initiative: A Review Essay" By CWP Alum Todd H Hall & Alanna Krolikowski
Although less than a decade old, the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been the subject of considerable attention and conjecture. After initial waves of speculation and punditry, now more rigorous work on the plans, structure, and implementation of this initiative is beginning to contribute to the debate. In this essay, we showcase how three recent monographs make sense of the BRI: One Belt One Road: Chinese Power Meets the World, by Eyck Freymann; The Belt Road and Beyond: State-Mobilized Globalization in China: 1998–2018, by Min Ye; and Orchestration: China’s Economic Statecraft across Asia and Europe, by James Reilly. Surveying the arguments and findings of these works together, we seek to draw out insights and implications for how we should understand the BRI. In particular, we highlight the political significance of the BRI’s close association with PRC leader Xi Jinping, the ways in which the BRI follows long-standing patterns of campaign-style mobilization within the PRC, the crucial role of local partners, and the BRI’s potential consequences for the larger international system in light of the broader literature in international relations. We conclude by discussing the need to now also consider unintended outcomes.
Si bien su desarrollo tuvo lugar hace menos de una década, la Iniciativa de la Franja y la Ruta (Belt and Road Initiative, BRI) de la República Popular China (RPC) ha sido objeto de considerable atención y conjeturas. Luego de una oleada inicial de especulaciones y opiniones de expertos, un trabajo más riguroso sobre los planes, la estructura y la implementación de esta iniciativa empieza a contribuir al debate. En este ensayo, se aborda cómo tres monografías recientes dan sentido a la BRI: One Belt One Road: Chinese Power Meets the World, de Eyck Freymann; The Belt Road and Beyond: State-mobilized Globalization in China: 1998– 2018, de Min Ye; y Orchestration: China’s Economic Statecraft across Asia and Europe, de James Reilly. Mediante el análisis de los argumentos y las conclusiones de estos trabajos, intentamos recopilar ideas e implicaciones sobre cómo debemos entender la BRI. En particular, destacamos la importancia política de la asociación estrecha entre la BRI y el líder de la RPC, Xi Jinping, las formas en que la BRI sigue patrones antiguos de movilización de campañas dentro de la RPC, la función clave de los socios locales y las posibles consecuencias de la BRI respecto al sistema internacional más amplio según la literatura más amplia sobre las relaciones internacionales. En la conclusión, se analiza la necesidad actual de considerar también los resultados no deseados.
Bien qu’elle date de moins d’une décennie, l’initiative de la nouvelle route de la soie de la République Populaire de Chine (RPC) a fait l’objet d’une attention et de conjectures considérables. Après les premières vagues de spéculations et d’avis d’experts, des travaux plus rigoureux sur les plans, la structure et la mise en œuvre de cette initiative commencent maintenant à apporter leur contribution au débat. Dans cet essai, nous présentons la manière dont trois monographies récentes comprennent l’initiative de la nouvelle route de la soie : One Belt One Road: Chinese Power Meets the World d’Eyck Freymann, The Belt Road and Beyond: State-mobilized Globalization in China: 1998–2018 de Min Ye et Orchestration: China’s Economic Statecraft across Asia and Europe de James Reilly. Nous étudions l’ensemble des arguments et des conclusions de ces travaux et nous cherchons à en tirer des renseignements et des implications quant à la manière dont nous devrions comprendre l’initiative de la nouvelle route de la soie. Nous mettons en particulier en évidence l’importance politique de l’étroite association de l’initiative de la nouvelle route de la soie au dirigeant de la RPC, Xi Jinping, les manières dont cette initiative suit des schémas de longue date de mobilisation de type campagne au sein de la RPC, le rôle crucial des partenaires locaux, et les conséquences potentielles de cette initiative sur le système international au sens plus large, à la lumière de la littérature plus large sur les relations internationales. Nous concluons en abordant le fait qu’il est maintenant également nécessaire de prendre en considération les conséquences imprévues de l’initiative de la nouvelle route de la soie.
International Studies Review (2022), viac023 More here
Prof Hall earned his PhD from the University of Chicago in 2008 and has held postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton and Harvard, as well as visiting scholar appointments at the Free University of Berlin, Tsinghua University in Beijing, and the University of Tokyo. Prior to joining the University of Oxford, Prof Hall held the position of Assistant Professor in Political Science at the University of Toronto (2010-2013). Research interests extend to the areas of international relations theory; the intersection of emotion, affect, and foreign policy; and Chinese foreign policy. Recent publications include articles in International Organization, International Security, International Studies Quarterly, International Studies Review, Political Psychology, Political Science Quarterly, and Security Studies. Prof Hall has also published a book with Cornell University Press, titled Emotional Diplomacy: Official Emotion on the International Stage, which was recently named co-recipient of the International Studies Association's 2016 Diplomatic Studies Section Book Award.
Alanna Krolikowski focuses her research on China-U.S. relations in strategic high-technology sectors. Her doctoral dissertation examines trade and technical cooperation between the two countries in commercial aircraft-manufacturing and civil-commercial space. During her time in the program, she will develop this project to examine bilateral relations in other high-technology sectors.
Alanna holds a PhD in political science at the University of Toronto. She has conducted research in Beijing and at several other sites across China as a visiting scholar in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and in Washington, DC, as a visiting scholar in the Space Policy Institute of The George Washington University. Alanna graduated with a Bachelor of Arts with First Class Honours from McGill University and has a Master's degree from the University of Toronto.
Photo Credit: By Lena Appenzeller, Sabine Hecher, Janine Sack - Brake, Michael , ed. (2020) Infrastrukturatlas: Daten und Fakten über öffentliche Räume und Netze (1st ed.), Lahr: Druckhaus Kaufmann, p. 43 ISBN: 978-3-86928-220-6., CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=102700434
