Bush' s China Policy and the Future of Sino-U.S.Relations

The past two years have witnessed great fluctuations ininternational oil prices,and diplomatic efforts,both above andunder the table,by major powers around this issue.The currenttension in the war-threatened Iraq has added more uncertainties to thefuture world oil situation.Will the world oil supply and demand change?What impact would this exert on big powers’ oil strategy choices,geopolitics as well as world economy?What should China do in such asituation?To find the answers to these questions,at the invitation of theeditor of the Contemporary International Relations,seven experts fromChina Institute of Contemporary International Relations gathered to have adiscussion in early February this year.Naturally,they have differentviews over many issues.Still,we hope our readers would find theirdiscussion interesting.Following is the list of participants.

Beijing's Foreign Economic Relations and Trade

Beijing’s foreign economic relations and trade in 1993 surpassed that of 1992, and remarkable breakthroughs were made during the last year in the utilization of foreign capital, export volume and foreign exchange earnings, and the construction of development zones, according to Mr Zhang Xuequn, the Deputy Director of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission of the Beijing Municipal Government. The robust development

Beijing's Steady Growth in Foreign Economic Relations and Trade

In 1995,Beijing’s foreign economic andtrade sector continued to deepen itsrestructuring,give play to its advantagesand overcome its difficulties,and maintainedsustained development in foreign trade,theutilization of foreign investment and foreigncooperation. The year 1995 saw an import andexport volume of US＄4.23 billion,5.4 percentup from the previous year,including animport volume of US＄1.74 billion,down 8percent,exports of US＄2.49 billion,17.3percent up from the previous year,whichsurpasses the required US＄2.3 billion ofexports by the municipal government.Specialforeign trade companies and industrial andtrade companies had exports of US＄1.441billion,4.8 percent up from the previousyear,accounting for 57.9 percent of the

At the Juncture of China's Entry to WTO, An Overall Development of Foreign Economic Relations andTrade Will Be Carried out in XPCC

The Xinjiang Production andConstruction Corps (XPCC) was foundedin October 1954. Since 1990, its plan hasbeen listed directly under the state councilof PRC.After 50 years of arduouspioneering and development, the XPCChas now developed to be a specialorganization with a solid economicstrength and enterprise group superiority,which is based on the large-scale andmodernized agriculture, and guided

SINO-U.S.RELATIONS:AT A NEW CROSSROADS?

In recent months,Sino-American relations have been experiencing sort of an-other round of tensions,which have raised new concerns from both sides,al-though the optimism and hope for further development built up after a major break-through last summer still persist,especially at working levels.For those who knowthe history of Sino-American relations through the last two decades,the

An Analysis of Cyberspace Rule-Making in China-U.S. Relations

As an established power and a rising power respectively, the U.S. and China have profound impacts on the development of cyberspace. The foundation of cyberspace governance is to constrain the behavior of every international actor with effective norms. Therefore, cyberspace rule-making has an important implication in China-U.S. relations and it is necessary for both sides to formulate cyberspace norms under mutually acceptable concepts. Besides, the ideas of＂a new type of major power relations＂ and ＂a community with a shared future for mankind＂ provide theoretical foundation for cyberspace rule-making. In the short term, the establishment of norms can be promoted by negotiating limited issues, which could be called a low-level path. In the long run, they will reach informal mechanism which can be called a middle-level path, as well as formal mechanism of mutual recognition which can be seen as a high-level path, promoting the enforcement of cyberspace norms. Besides, ＂Track Two Diplomacy＂ and ＂Track 1.5 Diplomacy＂ also benefit the process of cyberspace rule-making negotiations.

New Sino-US Strategic Gambling and China’s Strategy

Since confidence is fading and anxiety is increasing in the US,America’s China policy has become more radical. In the short term, the US has the upper hand and China is in a relatively passive position. In the medium-and long-term, there will be more balance between them. This current strategic gambling between China and the US will be the major issue of international politics in the first half of the 21 st century and the most prominent external challenge China faces. China needs to make strategic adjustments but the gamble may be worthwhile in correcting imbalance in the international order and in the co-evolution of the two countries.

Public-Private Partnerships to Address Global Environmental Problem： Sino-US Cooperation on Climate Change and Energy

The study indicates that public-private partnerships （PPPs） can play ＂strategic＂, ＂practical＂, or ＂regulative＂ roles by making use of ＂instrumental＂, ＂institutional＂, and ＂normative＂ approaches in tackling political issues between countries. PPPs have often been discussed in studies of urban development, service provision, health care, and so on, but they have rarely been analyzed in terms of international relations and political problems on global environmental issues. This study takes an environmental problena---Sino-US energy and climate change cooperation--as a case study to inspect the possible roles and approaches of PPPs. Sino-US cooperation has been launched such as under the Strategic ＆ Economic Dialogue （S＆ED） by both administrations, which has significantly contributed to their reconciliation of domestic abatement policies in climate change, environmental protection, and energy. The establishment of schemes such as the Ten-Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and Environment （TYF）, the EcoPartnerships, and wide-ranging dialogues and initiatives on clean energy and clean vehicles, in which both public and private actors participate, are among the important approaches of facilitating bilateral cooperation. The study concludes that these schemes have played strategic and practical roles in strengthening the degree of mutual trust and in facilitating the progress of cooperation, although more investigations are needed to considerate their regulative roles. The application of instrumental, institutional, and normative approaches have been observed through the implementation of the TYF and EcoPartnerships.

Stop Toying Around With Sino-U.S. Relations

Since early March this year,the outcry concerning the quality of Chinese export commodities, from cosmetics to foodstuffs to toys, has been deafening,particularly from certain congressmen, presidential candidates and themedia in the United States. Tom Plate,a professor at UCLA, and Mei Xinyu,a research fellow with the Research Academy under the Chinese Ministry of Commerce,however,point out that an ineffective U.S.quality inspection system must shoulder some of the responsibility for the current safety scare.

The New Face of Sino-U.S. Relations

Barack Obama’s policy of change bodes well for Beijing since President Barack ObamaI assumed office on January 20,Sino-U.S. relations have gotten off to a good start:More high-level exchanges, closer economic

The“China Energy Threat”Thesis and Sino-U.S.Relations:A Critical Review

As the global energy market undergoes profound changes,the world oil price fluctuates at a high level,and also China’s dependence on energy imports is on the rise.Some American strategists and analysts are keen on creating and disseminating the“China Energy Threat,”an illusion that is now somewhat exaggerated and overrated.On the contrary,there are reasons to believe that it is America that is the most powerful influencer and actor on international energy security and America is well advised to examine its own policy and behavior.The“China Energy Threat”thesis has cast some shadow over the steady development of Sino-U.S.relations,giving rise to mutual suspicion,mistrust and misunderstanding.The Strategic Economic Dialogue(SED)between China and U.S.alone is not enough.Both countries should demonstrate their political wisdom,create new mechanisms,make concessions,transcend oil and build up mutual trust.These should be identified as the policy foci and chief objectives of China and U.S.both at present and in the future.

Securitization and De-securitization􀋖Turkey-Syria Relations since the Syrian Crisis

The article focuses on the nature of the relations between Turkey and Syria during the Syrian crisis.Although the relationship between Turkey and Syria had undergone some ups and downs in the last several years,both countries tried their best to improve their economic,political,cultural,and diplomatic relations.Indeed,Turkey introduced its model,“Moderate Islamic ideologies”,through Syria in the Middle East and North Africa(MENA).The“Arab Spring”of 2011 was a very good opportunity for Turkey to introduce its democratic Islamic dogmas which were welcomed by the Muslim Brotherhood leaders in some Arab Countries.But,the President of Syria,Bashar Al Assad,and his allies were very critical of Turkey’s policy.Thus,the article mainly explores the role of Turkey in Syria’s internal affairs,in particular,Erdogan’s policy towards Syrian crises.Besides,it examines Turkey’s domestic challenges and how Turkey has presented itself as a big supporter of the Arab Spring in the MENA.However,the article has found out that the current policies of Turkey towards the Syrian crisis are critical within the Middle East region.In other words,the conflicts and the wars against the Islamic State(ISIS)and the Kurdistan Workers’Party(PKK)weakened the bilateral relations.The Syrian refugees and the PKK are posing overwhelming challenges to Turkey’s economy and internal security.

Potential to Leap Forward?Interrogating the Relations between China and Tunisia

China has a stake in Tunisia,both strategic and economic.The situation of the county,as a Mediterranean,Arab-Muslim and African hub,is of great interest,and represents an important gateway for China to expand its economic interests in Africa and Europe.Compared with its neighbours,including Algeria,Egypt,Libya and Morocco,Tunisia has more transparent legal systems,better-established financial institutions and easier visa procedures.Nonetheless,these advantages have not yet translated into significant investment by and trade with China.This article analyses the factors for the historically tepid relations between China and Tunisia,what Tunisia means to China today in the context of the latter’s promotion of the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)and the prospects for the development of bilateral relations.

Religion and International Relations in the Age of Globalization

The global resurgence of religion and the return of religion from the so-called“Westphalia Exile”to the central stage of international religions have significantly transformed the viewpoints of both media and academia toward the role of religion in international relations(IR),and the challenges posed by religion to the contemporary international relations are often described as entirely subversive.The author argues that as a second-tier factor in the foreign policies of most countries and international affairs,religion and religious movements could neither shake the dominant role of“norm-setting”sovereign states in the international system,nor serve as a basis to“rebuild”IR theory.The paper concludes with a discussion on the implications of religion’s growing influence in IR for China,the importance of religion to the construction of China’s international image,and the feasibility of religion being developed as a resource for China’s public as well as people-to-people diplomacy.