Feb 15,2021 National Commentaries

A Russian Perspective on the Tensions on the Korean Peninsula

An authoritative Russian book makes clear how Moscow views the situation on the Korean Peninsula and what it would like the new US administration to do. The starting point is sharp criticism that the West ignored equal dialogue, respect for Russia’s sovereignty, and consideration for its core interests. While the Korean Peninsula is not a […]

Editorial Staff
Eastern Economic Forum , Eurasia , Joe Biden , Khasan-Rajin transit , Sinocentrism , Six-Party Talks , Vladimir Putin
Aug 27,2020 Special Forum

Multipolarity versus Sinocentrism: Chinese and Russian Worldviews and Relations

On July 3 Hu Xijin of Huanxiu Shibao inserted a needle in the bubble of Sino-Russian harmony, which some may be tempted to equate to Mao Zedong’s response to the 20th Party Congress in 1956.1 He was reacting to a Weibo (blog) in Chinese sent from the Russian embassy in Beijing celebrating the 160th anniversary […]

Gilbert Rozman
"Belt and Road" Initiative , Bipolarity , COVID-19 , Eurasian Economic Union , Multipolarity , Russocentrism , Sinocentrism , US-China rivalry
May 04,2020 Open Forum

Washington Insights, Vol. 8, No. 2

Unlike previous Washington Insights based on attendance at panels and person-to-person contacts, this one draws from a mixture of Zoom meetings and articles from Washington-based think tanks. Extracting alternative scenarios from these exchanges, we do not report on specific sources except for a small number of citations. The objective is to capture the overall tenor […]

Editorial Staff
America First , Cold War , COVID-19 , Donald Trump , hegemony , Sinocentrism , Xi Jinping
Oct 24,2018 Special Forum

Democratization, National Identity, and Foreign Policy in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia presents social scientists with a laboratory for the analysis of the relationship between democratization, national identities, and the consequences for foreign policy behavior. Types of nationalism, modes of nation-building, ethnic makeup, colonial heritage, the structure of governing coalitions, the shape and extent of interest and civil society organizations as well as regime types […]

Aurel Croissant
Confucianism , defective democracy , Embedded democracy , nationalist outbidding , polyarchy , Sinocentrism
Oct 24,2018 Special Forum

The Mediating Role of National Identity in Democratization and Lessons from Post-Cold War Foreign Policy in Northeast Asia

Trade wars and security clashes are in the forefront across greater Asia, but we would be remiss to overlook the intensifying struggle over democratization as a factor in international relations. On the one side is China backed by Russia, both intent on foiling not only “color revolutions,” but also democratic processes in general. On the […]

Gilbert Rozman
color revolutions , Confucianism , free and open Indo-Pacific , Primorskii Krai , Russocentrism , Sinocentrism
Nov 01,2016 Special Forum

Synopsis of the Seoul Forum for International Affairs, September 23, 2016

In the early autumn of 2016, there were repeated seminars and exchanges in Seoul and Washington, DC on three interrelated topics: how to respond effectively to the North Korean threat, how to manage Sino-US relations with North Korea more than the South China Sea in the forefront, and how South Korea should reassert its drive […]

Editorial Staff
4th nuclear test , 5th nuclear test , ASEAN , East Asia Summit , Eurasia Economic Union , G2 , Maritime security , Maritime Silk Road , Nordpolitik , offshore balancing
Oct 20,2016 Open Forum

One Belt, One Road: A New Roadmap for a Sinocentric World?

Nele Noesselt1 Chair for Chinese Politics, University of Duisburg-Essen In May 2015, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China jointly issued a document entitled “Vision and Actions on Jointly Building Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road,” a […]

Nele Noesselt
China Dream , harmonious world , Maritime Silk Road , Multipolarity , New Silk Road , One Belt One Road , Silk Road Economic Belt , Sinocentrism , Tianxia
Aug 29,2016 Special Forum

Introduction to the Special Forum

Not long ago, there was talk of the “end of history,” as if the post-Cold War era gave the nations of the world—especially dynamic East Asia—a compelling opportunity to put aside troubled historical memories. Instead, history in the past quarter century has continued to divert progress toward forging a future-oriented regional community. Many looked to […]

Editorial Staff
Cold War , imperialism , militarism , Sinocentrism , Territorial Disputes , WWII
Aug 29,2016 Special Forum

Chinese views of South Korean history

On August 3, Beijing ribao depicted THAAD as not aimed at defending against North Korea, but rather splitting China from South Korea.1 On August 7, Huanqiu shibao depicted the visit of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to Washington as Singapore joining in the US containment of China.2 China is rapidly adopting a polarized view of […]

Gilbert Rozman
China Dream , Cold War , communism , Koguryo , Korean War , Multipolarity , Northeast Project , regional order , Sinocentrism , Trustpolitik
Apr 30,2015 Open Forum

Washington Insights (Vol. 3, No. 2)

Different options have recently been aired before Washington think tanks for the regional architecture of Asia/the Asia-Pacific/the Indo-Pacific. Comparisons of four of these and the responses to some by the audience should be instructive. They are: 1) deferring to China centered on the South China Sea, promoting sinocentrism; 2) endorsing an invigorated EAS, capable of […]

Editorial Staff
APC , EAS , mililateralism , NAPCI , pivot to Asia , Sinocentrism , sub-regional multilateralism , TPP