ABSTRACT
The policy of ‘reform and opening up’ (gaige kaifang) adopted in 1979 by the post-Mao coalition has dramatically transformed China’s economy, society, and culture and its emergence as a major power in the global arena has raised concerns about a new bipolar rivalry between the United States and a rising China. Conversely, China’s engagement with the international community and its integration into the global economy and its key institutions has also encouraged the perception that the benefits of interdependence have given the PRC a considerable stake in peaceful competition. In the course of sharp debates on the pros and cons of the Open Door
policy and accession to the WTO over the last two decades, the official Chinese discourse on globalization has evolved from a simplistic emphasis on international economic linkages for national survival to a more nuanced analysis of the stakes of cooperation and competition at the global level. The Chinese leadership has continued to highlight its favourable view of multilateral management of the global economy, but it has also co-opted the arguments of both the New Left and the new conservatives to commit itself to a revision of the status quo to undermine the power and privileges of the dominant West. Thus, there is room for optimism regarding the ‘peaceful rise of China’, but a more assertive approach to safeguarding its economic and territorial security is also to be expected as China narrows its gap in capabilities and further elevates its status in the international hierarchy.
