ABSTRACT
Although China has been seen as a rising power with global significance in the post-Cold War world, its security relies heavily upon maintaining good relations with neighboring countries in the Asia-Pacific region. A Chinese strategist, Wu Xinbo, admits that although China has a great power self-image, it does not have adequate strength to play the role commensurate to this self-image. Therefore, “China is still a country whose real interest lies mainly within its boundaries, and to a lesser extent, in the Asia-Pacific region where developments may have a direct impact on China’s national interests. . . . In terms of interests and resources, it is fair to say that China is a regional power with some limited global interests.”1 With limited capacity in traditional economic and military terms, China has to focus its resources on the Asia-Pacific region. Over one decade ago, Steven Levine stated that “outside Asia, China’s role is determined more by what China may become than by what it already is.”2 This statement is still true today. Thus Beijing has to formulate its foreign policy particularly in response to issues close to home.
