Moving Beyond Sovereignty? A brief consideration of recent changes in China's approach to international order and the emergence of the tianxia concept

Dados Bibliográficos

ID12423345
AutoresAllen Carlson (autor correspondente)
Ano2010
Volume20
Fascículo68
Páginas89-102
Data de publicação2010-12-09
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal of Contemporary China (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1067-0564 • E-ISSN: 1469-9400
EditoraRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/10670564.2011.520848
OpenAlexW2080980737
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas22

This article examines recent trends in the evolution of elite Chinese foreign policy discussions about the normative organizing principles that should ground contemporary international politics. It finds that a pragmatic emphasis on sovereignty, albeit as a right which is flexible and far from sacrosanct, still maintains a core position within Chinese thinking in this regard. However, at the same time, a surprising reconstitution of an old world view has begun to take shape in China. More specifically, the tianxia (all-under-heaven) concept has emerged as a new reference point for some Chinese deliberations on the normative structure of international relations. While such a perspective is still of secondary importance within Chinese international relations circles, its emergence suggests that a potentially far-reaching, if still inchoate, reconsideration of international order is underway in China. Moreover, such a development may have broad ranging implications for the security dynamic that takes shape in Asia in the coming years

China · Economics · Elite · Epistemology · Foreign policy · Heaven · International relations · Normative · Order (exchange · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Sovereignty · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · History · International Development and Aid · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law