The influence of the People’s Republic of China on world affairs is increasingly keenly felt: in Asia, in Africa, in Latin America and in Europe and North America too. But what are the reasons for China’s rise and how can the West adapt?Advantage China explores these essential questions and the political, economic and cultural factors behind the answers. From the economic and demographic pressures of China’s domestic economy to the expanding economic influence of the Belt and Road Initiative, Jeremy Garlick looks beyond Western misperceptions of China’s rise to argue for new approaches to the international political order, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jeremy Garlick, PhD, is an Associate Professor at Prague University of Economics and Business. He specialises in China’s international relations, focusing primarily on the progress and regional implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) but also on China’s relations with Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), South Asia and the Middle East. He is the author of The Impact of China’s Belt and Road Initiative: From Asia to Europe (2020).
List of Figures and TablesAcknowledgementsAbout the AuthorIntroduction1. China and the West2. China, Agent of Change3. China's Comparative Advantage4. The Belt and Road Initiative 5. China's Relations with it's Neighbors6. China's Relations with the Rest of the Global South7. China and the West, RevisitedNotesSelected BibliographyIndex
A clearly and concisely written analysis which shows that while China might not be the hero of the developing world it presents in its own government rhetoric, nor is it the villain so frequently presented in external criticisms of its emerging international role. Garlick assembles evidence which, with impressive rationality, he interprets and constructs a nuanced argument from. An important primer for one of the major geopolitical changes of modern times.