ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the domestic drivers of China’s expansion of its geopolitical role, which includes, first, the recentralisation of power under Xi Jinping, second, the atavistic revival of China’s national ambitions and, third, pride in the military and the enhanced role of the navy. China has undergone a geopolitical reassessment of position in the Western Pacific entailing an effort to push the United States away and keep the Americans at a distance, particularly from around Taiwan and the South China Sea. Xi Jinping’s abolition of term limits on the presidency announced in February 2018 was anticipated as a logical conclusion to his efforts to recentralise power. The Party has espoused developmental goals and economic success but this has stimulated extensive corruption and self-seeking that has undermined its legitimacy. Nationalism and patriotism have been stimulated by the Party and have a powerful influence over foreign policy, jolting the leadership into a more assertive posture internationally and regionally.
