Is it Asia's 21st century?
Those of you who know me already know that Asia fascinates me, so I couldn't stop writing about the New Silk Road and the foreign policy of the Asian Giant, although I will do it very briefly:
La Xi Jinping's foreign policy pick up the neoliberal vision of this State since the fall of the Berlin Wall, emphasized by globalized and interdependent world in which the mutually beneficial cooperation It is not only possible but necessary, leaving behind, at least in theory, what is known as a zero-sum game.
View: Xi Jinping's foreign policy after the 19th Congress: China wants a central role on the global stage
Xi Jinping is inspired by Hu Jintao's theory of peaceful development to further assert the need to cooperate between States to build “a community of shared destiny”.
For that, knowing the importance of the country's reputation abroad, have redoubled diplomatic and propaganda efforts as instruments of soft power, arguing its commitment to the liberalization of international trade and respect for the socioeconomic models of other countries.
People's Republic of China
The PRC or People's Republic of China is shown as a responsible actor that promotes global public goods, la improvement of the environment and peace-keeping, as seen in 2014 with the agreement against climate change that it announced with the United States, in which it committed for the first time to reduce the total volume of emissions by 2030.
Essential position to reach an agreement on the Paris Climate Summit.
Additionally, he actively participates since 2013 in United Nations missions, which has positioned it as the permanent member that contributes the most to the Organization.
These efforts to increase their international profile They are being especially notable in East Asia, as it is the area where the greatest geostrategic challenges are concentrated.
Instruments Used
Regarding the instruments used for all this, we can highlight the public diplomacy with which it disseminates numerous information about the role of China's international trade and investment, with the intention of showing itself as a country of opportunities that supports its neighbors.
But without a doubt, its strongest bet is the BRI –Belt and Road Initiative-, widely linked to Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which leads the Asian Giant.
The officially known as ““Belt and Road initiative” It is a clear example of the new foreign policy line of the People's Republic of China.
Through this project you are trying to create a Pan-Asian architecture that makes it essential in the region at the same time as a diplomatic and economic instrument that forges or intensifies interstate relations with actors such as the European Union, Latin America or Russia.
This new “belt”, in the words of the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, would go from China to the Mediterranean, through the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Objectives and Strategies
One of the objectives is to facilitate the development of the countries included (more than 70 currently, totaling 4.400 billion people, 55% of the world's GDP and 75% of known energy reserves). connecting them through a network of infrastructure such as airports, ports, fiber optic networks, highways, railways, oil and gas pipelines, and industrial parks.
In this way, we search linking the Chinese economy with raw material suppliers, in addition to new markets for their exports.
That is, it is a new engine of growth in the face of its deceleration.
In this way, we find ourselves facing a geoeconomic strategy, which is also geopolitics.
And an example of this could be that, in the face of US relations with states such as Japan or Taiwan, which have intensified in recent months, by integrating various Asian subregions and strategically adding them in both a continental (Euroasian) and maritime (Pacific and Indian) direction. becomes a central element of the regional order that reduces the maneuver capabilities of the United States.
Despite all of the above and although the Chinese government is working conscientiously on it, still need to see the project completed.
Perhaps we are facing the change of course of Eurasia and the international system.
LL.M in International Business Law and Law from ISDE and graduated in Law and International Relations from Loyola University. CEO and business internationalization consultant at Reáculoateypunto.
