OADI 2120 - China's Diplomacy & the Global South

***UPDATED for 2024/25***

This course focuses on the substantive role that China plays in the Global South where its preponderance of material power and putative developing country status confers upon it a dominant position in bilateral and regional political economies. China's economic position, coupled to an astute use of finances flowing from its mercantilist policies, has enabled it to become the leading trading partner and a significant investor in the developing world. Moreover, the Global South is increasingly figuring in Beijing's expanding security interests and soft power provisions. Interpretations embedded in prevailing academic discourses like socialization, threat and peaceful rise take on new meaning when studied through the lens of ties with developing countries. Understanding how dynamics in this relationship are impacting upon a host of global and contemporary issues (BRICS, multilateralism, peacekeeping, and the environment) is crucial to the shape of the 21st century.

Learning Outcomes

1. an understanding of the theoretical and analytical framework that can help understand the dynamics of China's relations with the Global South

2. an empirically based understanding of the key debates on China's relations with the Global South

3. an understanding of the role of local agency in the Global South in response to China and the new dynamics its policies and presence induce

4. a critical assessment of the position adopted by the US, Europe and other emerging powers towards these developments.

Professional Skills

Students will develop an ability to critical ability to analyses arguments, sources and debates in the social sciences generally and in this topic specifically.

Chris ALDEN,Alvaro MENDEZ
Séminaire
English
- In Class Prresence: 4 hours a week / 24 hours a semester

- Online learning activities: 2 hours a week / 24 hours a semester

- Reading and Preparation for Class: 2 hours a week / 24 hours a semester

- Research and Preparation for Group Work: 1 hours a week / 12 hours a semester

- Research and Writing for Individual Assessments: 1 hours a week / 12 hours a semester

No prerequisites
Spring 2024-2025
• Individual Participation (10%). Students are expected to be prepared for each seminar and actively participate in discussions.p> • Group Presentation (30%). Students are required to make one group presentation during the seminar. The topic will be assigned by the course lecturer. p> • Essay (60%). Each student will research and write a 3000 word essay (including citations) on a topic assigned by the course lecturer at the beginning of term. Essays are to be submitted electronically by end of term. p>
Student presentations will be evaluated and marked, with written feedback being provided to students.

Student final essays will be evaluated and marked, with written feedback being provided to students.

1. Liu, G. (2016). China Rising: Chinese Foreign Policy in a Changing World. London: Palgrave
2. Shambaugh, D. (2014). China goes global: the partial power. Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. Alves, Ana Cristina, & Lee, Su-Hyun. (2022). China's BRI developmental agency in its own words: A content analysis of key policy documents. World Development, 150, 105715. doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2021.105715
4. Alden, Chris, & Mendez, Alvaro. (2023). China and Latin America: Development, Agency and Geopolitics. London, UK: Bloomsbury.
5. Alden, C. and Large, D. (2018). (Eds) New Directions in Africa-China Studies. London: Routledge.
6. Fornes, G., & Mendez, A. (2018). The China-Latin America Axis: Emerging Markets and their Role in an Increasingly Globalised World (2 ed.). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
7. Mendez, Alvaro, & Alden, Chris. (2021). China in Panama: From Peripheral Diplomacy to Grand Strategy. Geopolitics, 26(3), 838-860. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/14650045.2019.1657413
1. Mendez, A., & Turzi, M. (2020). The Political Economy of China–Latin America Relations: The AIIB Membership. New York: Palgrave Pivot.
2. Shambaugh, D. (2018). U.S.-China Rivalry in Southeast Asia: Power Shift or Competitive Coexistence? International Security, 42(04), 85-127.
3. Mendez, Alvaro. (2024). Latin American agency: The New Development Bank, Uruguay's accession and Brazilian influence. Global Policy, 15(2), 405-413. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/1758-5899.13214
4. Mendez, Alvaro, & Estrada, Gaspard. (2023). État des lieux de la présence chinoise en Amérique Latine et aux Caraïbes. Direction générale des relations internationales et de la stratégie (DGRIS). https://www.sciencespo.fr/ceri/sites/sciencespo.fr.ceri
5. Mendez, Alvaro, & Alden, Chris. (2024). Panama, Ecuador, and China: The Dangers of Short-Term Calculations. SPECIAL REPORT: UNITED STATES INSTITUTE OF PEACE. https://www.usip.org/publications/2024/07/panama-ecuador-and-china-dangers-short-term-calcula